Like a Look of Agony
by StarvingLunatic
Summary: After the exhausting adventure in Neverland, Regina, Emma, and Henry return to Storybrooke to more turmoil that starts with Regina giving up to the Charmings. Everyone is looking for Regina to be punished, except Emma. Somehow, Regina's punishment becomes Emma's as well. It gets worse from there. SQ.
1. Sweet Surrender

I don't own these characters; Disney/ABC does.

New story time. This one will eventually be SwanQueen. Thanks to my beta, Sydney. Come say hi to me on Facebook, folks. There's a link on my profile.

The title comes from the lines, "I like a look of agony/Because I know it's true…" Emily Dickinson. Check out the rest of the poem. It's good, like most of her work.

Like a Look of Agony

1: Sweet Surrender

The adventure in Neverland was over and Regina knew what was coming well before it happened. How could she not see it coming? She was the villain in every story, even her own once she stopped and thought about it. So, as Hook's sorry excuse for a ship docked, there was only one question to answer. Did she want to continue to be everyone's villain?

Part of Regina, a huge part, wanted to keep fighting. She was a trained, seasoned fighter at this point. It was her instinct to fight. Even her mother tried to break her as a girl, she fought. It was how she ended up being someone who could love a stable boy and save a bratty princess from a runaway horse. Beyond that, fighting was how she ended up the villain in every story. She was not tired. She was ready for more, but…

Regina's eyes drifted to Henry. He was some distance away, leaning against the railing with his birth mother, the ocean mist spraying in their smiling faces with the sun beaming on them, giving them a literal halo from what she could see. Their eyes were bright as the sun as they waved to the crowd on the docks. They glowed. Had she ever glowed? She doubted it. What did she ever have to glow about? How could she ever glow raised in the dark, kept in the shadows? She stole glows. After all, she was a villain.

Did she want to steal their glows? The answer to that was easy and made the answer to her original question even easier. She did not want to steal their glows. The thought made her stomach sink. She did not want to be their villain and if she did not want to be their villain, she could not be anyone's villain. She was not sure what she could be if not a villain, but she would soon find out. While her stomach might be down in her feet, she would hold her head high.

The gangway was dropped and the thunder of footfalls exiting the ship thumped through Regina. It rattled her bones, but she stood as strong now as she had for her execution. Except, she did not move as the ship emptied. Somehow, this felt worse than her execution. The anxiety in her grumbling in her stomach, scratching under her skin, and tearing apart her lungs was there. A new unknown made her legs like stone and made her heart heavy. _I've lost so much and don't want to lose more, but do I even have something to lose?_

Her eyes found Henry with Emma. He held her hand and chatted with her so lively as he pulled her into the crowd, into warmth and hugs and affection and love. He never looked back. She would not expect otherwise, even after defeating a near god for him, after doing the impossible for him. While she might not be his villain anymore, she was not his mother anymore either. He would not see her as such, not with Emma by his side.

_Emma will protect him_. The thought strengthened Regina, giving her the resolve for what had to be done. Emma loved their son as Regina did, maybe _better_ than Regina did. Emma loved him enough to know when to let him go, even when it hurt. _I need to learn this lesson, better than before_. If Henry had to chose, she knew who he would pick. It hurt, but at least she could trust Emma to take care of him. That was the only thing that mattered.

What did Regina know of love anyway? She told Henry she did not know how to love very well and she could not see how a few months had changed that. Emma knew how precious love was and would give Henry what he needed. _It'll be fine. They'll be fine_.

The ship was devoid of life by the time Regina got her thoughts together and the crowd's mood changed. The cheers transformed into jeers as she stood there alone. Bottles and garbage were launched in her direction. She held her head high. No, she was not a villain anymore, but she was still a queen.

She waved off the trash, littering the ship's deck. The crowd jumped back and ducked. She chuckled, deep in her a throat, a sound they surely recognized. It carried over the cry of gulls and the drift of the sea.

She made her way down to the docks, each step calculated and calm. Yelling greeted her as her feet settled on dry land, but everyone made sure to stand back. She stood tall, making sure she projected the control she had. The only reason they could do any of this was because she allowed it. She raked the crowd with her gaze, eyes sharp and they paused. Some flinched. Lesson learned.

The imposter prince, also deputy sheriff, stepped over to her. Regina fought the urge to roll her eyes, even though her insides had not settled. Her bravado always beat her nerves. One of the things that made her a villain was putting on a brave face. _But, this is all on your terms, so this is not a pretense. You are still in control_.

"Regina Mills, you're under arrest." David held up his handcuffs and smirked at her.

Regina scowled. "In front of my son?" She was not surprised. When had the shepherd tried to grant her dignity? He did not think she was worthy of such, even though he was nothing more than the lowly son of a drunken shepherd.

"He's not your son," David said with conviction and pride.

Regina resisted the urge to take his head off with a wiggle of her finger. It would not do any good, except make her what she decided not to be. So, she put her hands out. "He will always be my son." They could take him from her now, but it would not change his early years with her. They could not take those memories, those lessons. They could not take away the fact that she saved Henry's life.

Despite Regina words, Henry's eyes were not on her. They were on the ground, as if he refused her. But, he could not refuse her for the same reasons he would always be her son. Despite that, he dismissed her and that hurt more than anything ever would. The things she would have done for her mother, _did_ do for her mother, and he would sever his connection to her. The pain was beyond measure. _This is why you can't be a villain anymore_. It did not give her what she wanted, ever, and only hurt her in the end.

David clamped the handcuffs on, still smirking as the metal ate into her flesh like a dull knife. "He's Emma's son. You're just a monster."

Regina's throat burned. Did Henry think that? She sought him out in the crowd again and spotted him now paying attention to the people around him. He moved, though, without looking at her still. He was not far with Emma's arm wrapped around his shoulders, holding him close. It was then that he looked up. His eyes met hers and then he stepped forward, only to be held back by his birth mother. What did he think of any of this? What did Emma think of any of this?

Regina tried to bury that thought. She should not expect Emma to stand up for her. Emma had to worry about making sure Henry was all right. Henry was what mattered. But, surely Emma would not let Henry think she was a monster when she was gone, right? Emma had to know she was not a monster.

"Mom!" Henry reached out for her. His eyes did not call her a monster. His tone cried concern and that kept her head up. He had not refused her. Maybe he just did not know what was happening until now. Him knowing she was not a monster was enough.

"Well, shepherd, shall we go? Are we to walk to jail?" Regina arched her eyebrow. They might have her son, but they could not have her dignity, not now. Not with him watching. Hell, they did not even have him. Emma had Henry and that was not the same as _them_ having Henry.

David frowned. "Just walk."

Regina did so with the town folk barking at her as she moved. Trash continued to come her way, but never hit her. A few people felt emboldened by her restraints and got in her face. The second she met their eyes, they backed down. The whole thing reminded her of when she was marched to her execution. A hand on her shoulder stopped her movements.

"Shepherd," Regina said as a warning. He would lose that hand should he touch her again without her permission. _Do they really think this handcuffs mean anything to me? I just killed a god_.

David removed his hand. "The cruiser is right there."

He opened the cruiser door and Regina eased herself into the back seat. She did not waver as the back of the cruiser was pelted with more garbage. There were pinging noises as rocks hit the rear door. Henry managed to make it close enough for her to see him before the cruiser moved. His eyes looked wet, or maybe it was from the soda splattered on the window.

David drove Regina to the station and locked her in the cell. He looked proud of himself, chest puffed out and shoulders squared. She checked the cell for a fetish or charm. Surely there had to be something there that he expected to keep from her burning his face off. But, there was nothing. The town had not bothered to prepare for her incarceration. _Fools_. She was tempted to burn the whole place to the ground just for their stupidity.

"You should've known you can't dodge justice forever," David said with a smile.

Her fingers itched to wipe the smug look off of his face, but she wanted to stop being the villain. So, she settled onto the thin bed that doubled as a bench. She made sure to sit with the best posture and folded her hands in her lap, even though she was still handcuffed.

"Justice for whom exactly?" Regina asked.

"For all the people you slaughtered," he replied.

"Was I the only one fighting a war?" She batted her eyes. Were the bodies only her fault?

"You started the war."

She tilted her head. "Did I? I only wanted one person and she decided running away would be better than facing me."

His face went completely red. "You wanted to kill her! Was she supposed to let you?"

"Maybe she was supposed to face me herself and tell me no one else had to die. Instead, she hid. She started a rebellion and even as the bodies piled up, she continued on. My hands aren't the only ones with blood, dear."

David sneered at her. "You're not going to get out of this one, especially if you think saying stuff like that is going to endear you to Snow this time."

"Does it look like I'm trying?" Regina motioned around them. He was such an arrogant moron. _Peon_. He was so clueless as to what was going on around him, yet he thought he was superior to her. At least she did not kid herself over her child's feelings toward her. _Don't you dare say that to him. You will not betray Emma, no matter how annoying her father is_.

He glared at her. "You're probably plotting as always or hoping Snow's soft spot for you will save you again."

Regina rolled her eyes. "Yes, because we all know I live to depend on Snow White." She showed him how to properly glare and got him to flinch. _Too easy_. "Only one of us is dependent on Snow White."

"Yet it's thanks to her you're still alive."

Regina scoffed. "She gets credit for that, but no one wants to discuss how it's thanks to her I exist in the first place."

He waved that off. "Oh, please. You've always had this thing in you, like Snow has good and kindness in her."

Regina could not help laughing. "We are all capable of great kindness and great evil. Just as we can all be selfish and selfless. How you feel about a person might color your perception?" After all, had she not done a great kindness once? And what had that gotten her beyond pain and suffering? But, then again, what had great evil gotten her? More of the same. _Perhaps, I was meant to live in darkness, in the cold, and to only know pain and suffering_.

David scowled and pointed at her. "No, some people are just evil."

Regina did not respond, but came so close to telling him that his daughter might disagree with him, if only to shut his self-righteous ass up. She did not want to have to deal with that argument, knowing he would never believe she knew his daughter better than he did. He probably thought he knew everything about Emma by the sheer virtue of being her father. _Simpleton_.

There was no reason to talk to David and Regina was aware of that long before this conversation. She was not going to be a villain anymore. She had surrendered. She did not need to deal with him for the moment. _Maybe never again if this goes how I think it'll go_. That might be the one good thing to come out of this whole mess.

David gnashed his teeth at her, needing to let her feel his wrath in some way. She turned away, unimpressed and unaffected. He watched her for a long moment, but then broke away. She eyed him storming off, slamming the door on his way out. The door did not make much noise, though, thanks to the way it was built.

Regina shook her head. She could hardly believe this nonsense. This fool left a witch alone inside a jail in handcuffs as her only resistant. At least she was no longer a villain, which was a weight off of her, but still pressed on her somehow.

"How could I not win against them?" It would probably forever boggle her mind.

-8-8-8-8-

There were enough people in the Town Hall gathering area for Emma to hear them grumbling, muttering about having Regina's head, while she was holed up in the conference room with Henry, her mother, Ruby, Granny, and several other people Emma was not very familiar with. Apparently, they were entitled to decide what to do with Regina. She suspected they were other royals or nobles that Regina had antagonized during her run as the Evil Queen.

Mother Superior, also known as the Blue fairy, was also there. Why a nun or even a fairy had a say on things, Emma was not sure. She was not sure how the power structure of the Enchanted Forest worked. She had to assume whatever was going on had to do with the Enchanted Forest because it did not make sense to her. Oddly enough, Neal and his father were somehow part of the equation on deciding what to do with Regina. What the actual hell?

"Guys, I'm not sure what we can do about Regina legally speaking," Emma said to cut through the mumbled argument the large group was engaged in.

"Legally speaking?" Mary Margaret said with an arched eyebrow. She folded her arms across her chest and stared at Emma in a way that suggested Emma should back down. Emma did not know how to do such a thing when it came to Regina, though. It was probably because Regina was the mother of her kid.

"Yeah. Magical kidnapping and brainwashing aren't exactly felonies," Emma replied. Well, they were without the magical part. Maybe they could do something about putting Regina in jail. _Is there a suitable place to keep Regina if she's convicted of anything? _Her stomach twisted at the idea of Regina being in anything like a prison, or worse. Would she be able to take Henry for visits? Not if the crowd outside the room had anything to say about it.

"We're not using laws forced upon us by the Evil Queen," Mother Superior said.

"Emma, we're going to judge and punish Regina by the laws of our world," Mary Margaret said, voice low and patient. It made Emma want to punch her. She was not some stupid child.

"But, we're not in _that_ world," Emma replied. Why did they not get that? Why did they want the old world back so much that they would try to make it here?

"And whose fault is that?" Granny asked with bass in her voice. She gave Emma a hard look, almost like it was her fault. Emma glared right back.

"She needs to be punished for her numerous and unimaginable crimes," Mother Superior said.

"Burning at the stake would be a good start," a woman Emma was not familiar with practically spat. She was small with long brown hair done in a braid. Her dark eyes were stern, like she definitely wanted to set Regina on fire.

Emma held up a hand. "Okay, but there are laws here." She was not going to let run over her job or order. The second they started making up their own rules, she knew how that would go. It always led to chaos. She saw it enough in too many group homes where the adults around could not keep control of the angry, discarded kids. "And we're talking about punishing Regina for stuff in the other realm, but I see Gold standing right here as if he's in any position to pass judgment on anyone."

"Yeah, why aren't you talking about punishing him?" Henry stepped up, chin high and proud, like bullets would bounce off of his chest. Emma was not in the mood to test that theory, so she stepped in front of him. Not enough for him to notice she was being a shield, but enough to be a shield should someone decide to be stupid and with Gold in the room that was a high possibility.

Gold sneered in their direction and Emma tensed up a bit while Henry had the gall to glare back at his grandfather. Neal put himself in front of Gold. Neal's back was tight for a long moment. Emma looked around Neal, glaring at Gold. She was not afraid of him or his idiot, backstabbing son.

"Rumple is here to offer help," Mary Margaret said.

Emma rolled her eyes. It was nothing short of amazing how many times they went to this known psychopath for help. And then they would act surprised when he betrayed them for his own gain. What the hell was wrong with these people?

"Are you guys serious? Gold offered his help? In return for what? A full pardon? A seat the table? A chance to terrorize people again?" Emma inquired, wanting to pull her hair out at the madness already. How the hell could these people stand here and talk about punishing Regina while letting Gold off Scott free?

"That's not your concern," Mother Superior said, moving closer to Emma. The glower in her eyes was bloody murder.

Emma gave as good as she got. "I'm sheriff, so it is. I'm here to keep the town and the people safe, which isn't something Gold concerns himself with. So, yeah, this is very much my concern." She glanced around the crowd. "Unless, we're dissolving the sheriff's department since we're here against our will. What else will we be getting rid of without asking? I'm assuming you're not going to keep Regina on as mayor." She would not blame them for that, but she was not sure who would run the town in Regina's place. Knowing these people, they would elect Gold the freaking mayor.

The whole room basically gasped. "Of course not!" Several people managed to bark.

"So, special elections?" Emma doubted they would do that. From the tone of the meeting, they seemed to be in favor of turning Storybrooke into Enchanted Forest version 2.0. How was that fair to everyone? Surely there were some people who would rather live in Storybrooke than mucking out horse stalls or eating hard, stale bread.

"We'll be leading by committee, obviously." Mary Margaret motioned to those around her.

"As is our right," Edmund Kent said, stepping forward, standing out of the crowd.

Emma was not sure why she knew his name, but she did. She was not sure what Disney character he was. Hell, he did not seem like a Disney character at all. His eyes were hard and his jaw set. His vibe was so mean Emma would not want him to be a leader. He was probably some fairy tale that Disney decided to stay the hell away from.

"When the hell was this decided?" Emma flared her nostrils. They had been gone for a goddamn week and people just decided they were in charge because reasons?!

"It's been being phased in since you left," Kathryn said, her voice a little more patient than the others. "You're included, as a royal."

Emma frowned. "I don't want to be included." The gall! They put themselves in charge because they were in charge over in the Enchanted Forest. What made them think they should be in charge? It was like group home bullies all over again. "I don't want to be in charge. I'm happy with my position, my elected position. People picked me."

"People under a spell," Gold said with a glint in his eyes.

"Yeah, if that was the case, Sydney would've gotten the job," Emma replied. _Are they gonna put him in charge of something?_ If so, she would call bullshit right now. _No way I'm letting them punish Regina and not this clown_.

"It doesn't matter. This is how we're doing things," Maurice said.

"You can't just take away people's choices," Emma replied. Not to mention, there was no way twenty people could be in charge of anything. Not honestly or efficiently anyway. They had to know that.

"Yeah, that's not fair. People have rights," Henry said. Emma felt like she should silence him, but she also felt like she should let him talk. He was the reason they were all there. They should have to hear his opinion and tell him what they were going to do with his mom.

"People still have rights," Kathryn replied.

"But, no choices in who their leaders are and no choices in the decisions you make that'll effect their lives," Emma said.

"That's not how it always is." Kathryn gave a nonchalant shrug, as if this was all okay.

Emma shook her head. "That's how it is here. We're not in the Enchanted forest. You can't recreate the Enchanted Forest here." She could not figure out why they would want that. From what she saw of the place, it was not all that. She could do without going back.

"Until we can figure out how to go back, this is what we're going to do. Everyone's comfortable with that," Kathryn said, motioning around the room.

Emma arched an eyebrow. "Everyone?" She doubted that. Everyone in the room might be comfortable with it, but the town was too big for _everyone_ to be okay with signing away their rights and freedom and choice.

Maurice had the nerve to snap at her. "Yes, everyone, so get on board, Sheriff." A large man stepped up behind Maurice.

Emma had no idea who he was, but then again, she did not know many of the people who were in the room. "Who the hell is everyone?" Maybe they would introduce themselves.

"Those who matter," the large man said.

Emma stared him down. "And who the hell are you?" Might as well be direct since they could be rude.

He squared his broad shoulders. "I'm King Wesley Sax." He said it like his name should mean something to her.

She tilted her head and studied him. A light bulb went off in her head and then it came to her. "Aren't you the mailman?"

His face turned a bright red and he pounded his chest with a single fist. "I am a king! Ruler of one of the greatest domains in the Enchanted Forest." How many of those were there anyway? "And, we, the royals, are in charge. That's just the way it is. Deal with it."

Emma narrowed her gaze. "We'll see."

"I'm sure." He sneered.

Mary Margaret waved her hand, as if cutting through the tension. "Now, with that said, we have to figure out what to do with Regina." She looked at Emma. "That is the point of this and that's why Gold is here."

Emma glanced at Gold. There was a demonic glint in his eye and she knew. He made a deal. He would wiggle his way out of Enchanted Forest justice by putting Regina up as a sacrifice and these guys just ate it up. This cut deep, especially as he stood next to his sleazy, douche bag of a son. Neal came upon betrayal honestly. A family of snakes.

Emma looked to Mary Margaret and struggled to keep her mouth from falling agape. After everything that happened, everything they had been through with Gold, was Mary Margaret willing to fall for this again? "And you're all comfortable with this? Fine with trading Regina for him?" Emma sneered as she motioned to Gold with both hands.

Gold had the nerve to curl his lip at Emma, as if he were not actively plotting to stab them in the back eventually. She knew his game. How could they not see this? _What the fuck is wrong with everybody?_

Mary Margaret frowned a little. "It's not a trade. It's justice."

Emma shook her head. "Even I know he'll throw you under the bus the first chance he gets and I don't have that much history with him." _Come on!_

Gold scowled. "You make me sound dishonest, Sheriff Swan." He dared to put his hand to his chest, as if he was wounded.

"If the snake skin fits," Emma replied with gritted teeth. How could they be so stupid?

Gold gnashed his teeth at her, like that did not prove her point. No one reacted, though, not even a distasteful look. Emma could see how they ended up cursed. These people were hardheaded, stubborn, and possibly stupid. Why trust a guy that always screwed people over? Emma trusted someone who screwed her once and then after that, the trust was over. Yeah, she might get screwed again, but it would not be because she trusted an asshole twice.

"Emma, it's cool. My dad's changed," Neal said.

"Yeah, because you vouching for anyone fills me with great confidence. You're just as sleazy as he is." Emma made a quick, sharp motion to Gold.

"Emma!" Henry said.

"I'm not holding my tongue because he's your dad, Henry," Emma said. Neal might be the only person she could talk to any way she wanted. She had earned that right and more.

"All of this arguing is pointless. The matter's already settled," Mother Superior said.

"For the record, we don't all agree with it, but we have to do something about Regina," Ruby said.

"She's done too much to just roam free. It's not fair," Granny said.

"Sounds like nothing is," Emma replied, folding her arms across her chest. She had more to say, but the door opened and she paused.

David stepped inside. While the door was open, the din of the people was louder, clear. They were chanting. "Give us the Queen!" _Holy shit, it's another lynch mob_. "Give us the Queen!" And she caught a flash of pitchforks. _Did people go home to grab damn pitchforks?_

David shook his head. "There's more people here than over at the jail screaming for Regina's head."

Emma's heart sank into her chest. Were they about to execute Regina? They did that in the Enchanted Forest. Regina told her about it and she would never forget it. She could hear Regina's voice as she whispered about it under the Neverland endless sky, in the swampy heat, as sleep refused to come to them night after night as they worried over their son. Regina tried so hard to sound clinical, but her face had seemed haunted by the whole ordeal, eyes staring deep in the past. And she should be haunted by it. Regina had come inches from being killed in front of dozens of people, who would have cheered. Would they open the execution to the public if that was the plan?

Emma put her hand on Henry's shoulder as the color drained from his face. It was like he knew what they had in store for his mother. He looked at her, but she could not meet his eyes. It was probably worse than he thought. The chant faded as the door shut, but Henry remained pale as milk.

"You left Regina alone?" Mary Margaret asked as David moved over to her.

"No, all of the dwarves are guarding her and the building. There will be justice this time," David replied. The "this time" cemented for Emma what they were going to do to Regina.

"Executing Regina is not justice," Emma said. In her opinion, Regina never got justice and that was why they were in this mess. _Unless, of course, you take into account Regina is as much a liar as Gold and you let her con you back in Neverland_. She did not see how that was possible. Regina's emotions there were raw and real, more so than her own. Losing Henry for Regina had been like losing the only good thing life had ever given her. Emma could hardly imagine the pain and when Regina opened up to her, it became even more unfathomable.

Mary Margaret looked at her. "We're not executing her."

"We decided against that early on," Kathryn said.

"Yeah, well, it doesn't sound like the mob outside got the memo." Emma jabbed her thumb behind her.

"They want justice," Mother Superior said.

"But, it won't come at the end of a noose or firing squad," Kathryn said.

"Hanging's too good for that woman, anyway," Granny said. She looked at Emma as she said it, like she was daring Emma to contradict her.

Emma wanted to say something to Granny, but managed to bite her tongue on the matter. She did not want to risk losing her small group of people over Regina just yet. Yes, Regina was all open and sadness in Neverland, but she knew it did not take much for Regina to bite her like a pit viper. _Still, I don't want them to hurt her_. Part of her, a part she ate and swallowed into an abyss, wanted them to understand Regina.

Emma arched an eyebrow and was almost afraid to ask. "Then what?" If they were not going to execute Regina, then what were they going to do? What did Enchanted Forest justice look like?

"The worst punishment for someone of her status," Mary Margaret said.

"Please, don't hurt my mom," Henry's voice cracked, like a sob broke in his throat. He grabbed Emma's hand and squeezed it tight enough to hurt. She ignored the pain, more angry at herself for bringing him to this place and put him in a position to hear all of this. What type of mother was she?

Mary Margaret had the nerve to coo. "Oh, sweetie."

"You have your mother, dear boy," Mother Superior said.

Henry held on tighter and glanced at Emma. _Oh, boy_. Her stomach dropped. Did he not see her as his mother now? What had she done to prove she was his mother? After hearing Regina talk about him as a baby, as a toddler, what could Emma say really made her his mother? _You love him_. Glancing at her own parents, she knew the emotion of love was not enough, not for a parent.

"I have two mothers. One can't replace the other," Henry said, his voice low, but strong.

"Oh really, dearie? The reason the Savior is even here is because you desired and deserved your birth mother," Gold said. Of course he would emphasis blood ties with Neal standing right next to him.

"Hey, don't try to make this sound like Henry's fault," Emma replied. After everything that happened, especially Henry actually dying, he did not need to carry around the trauma of whatever the hell these people planned to do to his mother. He did the right thing to free them of the Curse, so he did not need to walk around with any guilt over what happened to Regina. _Make sure you tell him that later_. A good mother would probably do that.

Gold smiled. "Of course I'm not saying that. I'm merely pointing out the lad has his mother. He has his family." There was a devilish glint in his eye, like he was laughing inside, like this was all a game to him. Their lives were a game to him. _This guy is sick_.

"Mom is my family and I don't want you to hurt my mom. I never wanted anyone to hurt my mom!" Tears slid down Henry's face.

Ruby stepped up and crouched down to his level. She smiled at him, but it might as well have been an insult from the way he looked. "Henry, I get that you're upset. Regina raised you and saved your life in Neverland if Emma told that right, but you know as well as any of us that your mom hurt people. A lot of people. We can't just let that go by. That's not justice."

Henry sniffled and his shoulders dropped. He released Emma's hand and used that arm to wipe his face. Henry had grown in Neverland. He understood something Emma had learned long ago. A person could make their own family. It hurt that the people around them did not quite get that.

"So, what're you gonna do to my mom? What does justice look like?" Henry asked. That was a good question.

"Don't worry, Henry. It won't hurt, physically," Ruby replied.

"It's really too good for her," Mother Superior said.

"If it works," Kathryn said.

"We could've seen with the cuffs, but she didn't seem to be struggling," Granny said.

"No, she definitely went willingly. Maybe if she tries to escape the cell," David replied.

"What are you guys talking about?" Emma asked. How was it her parents were already in on this scheme? They just got back with her. They managed to get in on a plot with their friends and fellow royals, but could not be bothered to let her in on it. She should not be surprised considering how they had been treating her, but it still hurt, like damn near everything they did. She was not important enough to know what was going on around them, like they expected her to betray them. She was good enough to break the Curse, but nothing beyond that.

"We're going to bind Regina's powers with iron forged by the dwarves. It should work, in theory," Mary Margaret said.

"Why in theory?" Emma asked.

"Iron can bind fae magic, but Regina…" Mother Superior trailed off and looked away. Emma was not sure what the hell that was about. "That's where Rumple comes in. He has a spell to be sure we bind Regina."

"You're going to use iron to bind her?" Emma looked at Henry for a translation. He shrugged. She looked to Ruby.

"It'll stop her magic," Ruby replied.

"That doesn't sound so bad," Henry said, voice still quite low, like he was trying to make the most of a bad situation. Unfortunately, he did not realize those were famous last words.

-8-8-8-8-

Next time: the start of Regina's punishment… and somehow Emma's as well.


	2. Misery Loves Company

I don't own these characters; Disney/ABC does.

2: Misery Loves Company

Enchanted Forest justice was weird. Emma should have known that after spending time there, but that did not occur to her until "The Council of Royals" (she groaned in her own head over that) started to pass judgments. Apparently, Emma was a soldier in a war she had not known about. And on the winning side. This allotted her so called "spoils of war."

It hurt her head that they actually used the term spoils of war. _What year is it?_ One such spoil she stared at like it was a million piece puzzle she had to put together herself in an hour. It did not make sense. _Nothing good is gonna come out of this_. She could feel it in her bones.

A pretty magnificent townhouse in the conquered territory of Storybrooke was not something Emma expected and she really did not know what to do with it. Maybe that was why all she could do was stare at it from the curb. She rubbed her eyes and was surprised the house did not vanish as her vision cleared. _What the hell? Really, what the hell?_

"You okay?" Henry asked as he stepped next to Emma. He gripped the strap to his book bag as he stared at the house with her. His eyes widened slowly, but he seemed as overwhelmed as she was.

"I don't know yet." She scratched her forehead. Her head hurt and they had only been back a couple of days.

It had been a long couple of days, though. It did not help that they had not seen Regina since they got off the ship. Henry already had worry lines under his eyes over her. No one would explain anything to Emma. Her parents barely spoke to her, just telling her "don't worry about it" in a way they probably thought was not dismissive.

"How was school?" Emma asked to get her mind off of the spiral that was their lives. School was close enough for him to walk. She was not sure if she would encourage him to do so, though. Going around town on patrol earlier, the place had definitely looked better. Maybe it was not as safe as it was under the Curse and she was not sure what that could mean for people who thought the Enchanted Forest was a haven.

Henry rubbed the back of his neck and his eyes searched the ground. Before he even got a word out, Emma decided to observe his school a little closer when she dropped him off in the mornings and picked him up. The air was too heavy to play fast and loose with Henry's safety, especially after everything they went through in Neverland. _No, don't think about Neverland_. Thankfully, Henry started talking before her mind wandered.

Henry's shoulders dropped. "It was weird. I think they're still trying to figure out how to get it to work. But, it didn't really work. We spent most of the day in the gym. Not even playing, even though there was stuff to play with. It was just weird."

Emma frowned. "Why?"

"Some of the teachers weren't there. Well, a lot of teachers weren't there, not enough for classes anyway. We were in the auditorium for a while and the principal, Mister Orlean, was trying to talk to us, but then Mister Goodwin, that's the assistant principal, got mad about something. He started arguing with the principal about ranking or something. I dunno, but I think the Mister Goodwin outranked Mister Orlean in the Enchanted Forest. It was a mess." Henry sighed and shook his head. "Anything happened at work or was it just council business?"

"I had to work, which was good. I heard enough of that Council nonsense yesterday and this morning. Caught a couple of thieves and vandals." She did not know what she would do with them. There was not much space in the jail and judges were too tied up with other nonsense to hear about these petty criminals.

He nodded. "Good job." He sounded a little unsure about that, but it could have been from the confusion of the town point blank.

Emma shrugged, not sure what else to do. "I guess. It was enough for the Royal Council…" She had to roll her eyes at that. "It was enough for them to think I should keep my job rather than play princess in their make believe kingdom."

The idea of being on the Royal Council, ruling over the town, made Emma's stomach hurt and her teeth itch. The way her parents watched her that morning before she went to work, while she stood before the Council had not made things better. It was like they did not know her. It was a clinical examination and she could not get out there fast enough.

Henry nodded. "Did they tell you where Mom is?"

Emma gave him a proper, taking in how deep the lines were under his eyes, cutting through dark bags. She probably did not look much different. He had not been sleeping since they got back. She also had not been sleeping. Telling him none of this was his fault had not helped in any way she could see. Knowing what happened to his mother was probably the only cure for what ailed him.

They had not seen Regina since they got off of the Jolly Roger two days ago. They had not executed her, as far as Ruby and Mary Margaret knew. Or at least they refused to tell Emma if that was the case, but she believed them when they said Regina was still alive. That was good, but Emma's stomach was still in the same knots from two days ago.

"They said I'd know by the end of the day and handed me the keys to this place," Emma replied.

Henry faced the townhouse. "It looks nice." He said the same thing yesterday when Mary Margaret and David first presented to them their "new home," which had not been ready at that time. Houses seemed to be a common spoil of war. Mary Margaret and David were given Regina's mansion as leaders of the rebellion.

Emma was not sure why her parents would want to live in Regina's house. They looked at her like she was weird when she asked them about it, like they did not understand her question. There was a disconnect and rift opening. She tried not to think about it.

Henry moved a little, like he was trying to see around the house. "Did they ever say whose house this used to be?"

Emma shook her head. "Nope." Probably a villain in the Old World. But, did that person deserve to lose their Storybrooke home? Emma doubted it, but with little information to go on and being homeless with a kid, she could not do much about it.

"Is this weird?"

"Yup."

"Are we really just going to live in someone else's house?"

Emma rubbed her forehead. "They wouldn't take no for an answer. And where else could we go? We need more space than the loft had." Not to mention, one of the nobles took the loft off of Mary Margaret's hands as soon as she moved into Regina's house. Mary Margaret did not think Emma would want it, which was totally wrong. She did not want to tell Henry his grandmother gave away the apartment without considering them.

Henry's forehead winked. "We need more space than the loft?"

"There's technically only one bedroom." Of course, she had planned to block off the area her parents had used and would have turned that into her room, but she never got the chance.

Henry scowled, like he somehow knew her feelings toward losing the loft. It had been the first place to feel like home in a long time and Mary Margaret did not even bother to ask her if she wanted to stay there. She would have stayed. _No, don't think about it_. From the stabbing pins in her heart, it was too late.

Henry sighed. "You know the Nazis did this."

She looked at him with wide eyes. "What do you mean?" She really did not want or need a Nazi history lesson. There was already enough to think about with Regina's mass murder record being brought up every time she spoke to someone from the Royal Council.

Henry swallowed. "When they sent people to concentration camps, they gave Nazi officials their homes."

Emma's stomach twisted. "You're not making this easier, you know?"

"Sorry." For a moment, they stood there in silence and the townhouse seemed to loom over them. In the cold wind, Emma thought she could hear snickering.

Emma needed to fill the air before she went crazy, if she was not there already. "Why do you know that anyway?"

Henry shrugged. "Mom used to watch a lot of history documentaries. Do you think people's furniture will still be in there?"

That would make things too creepy and they would go stay at _Granny's_ if that was the case. "I hope to Hell not. They told me our stuff would be here when they handed me the key."

Henry's forehead wrinkled. "How?"

"Hell if I know."

"But, even if our stuff is there, we didn't have furniture. Well, not enough for a whole house, anyway."

Emma shrugged. "Again, hell if I know."

"So..." Henry blew out a breath, which hung in the cold air. "Are we going in?"

Emma motioned to the house with one hand, but they did not move. "We have a yard."

"Yeah."

"I've never had a yard. Do you know what to do with a yard?" Well, she never had a yard longer than a couple of months.

"Mom had guys come take care of it. Well, the lawn anyway. She gardened and stuff in the back, but planted flowers everywhere she could."

Emma scratched her head. "Makes sense."

Henry rubbed his hands together. "We really should go in."

_Can't put it off any longer and we're about to freeze to death_. Emma nodded and put her arm around Henry's shoulders. They strolled up the walkway together, footsteps somehow cautious in the same way, as if the house would bite them. At the door, a freshly painted deep blue, Emma pulled out the brand new keys. They stuck as sometimes new keys did.

"Maybe it's a sign. We shouldn't go in," Emma said.

"We have to go somewhere," Henry replied.

"True enough. Your mom would already scalp me for giving you pizza two days in a row. I don't want to think of what she'd do if I made you homeless." Emma fiddled with the key until it turned.

Henry watched Emma as she turned the knob and pushed the door open. Her heart jumped into her throat as she took a step forward. Henry hung close to her back. She consciously had to keep her hand away from her gun. Still, they crept in like they were doing a B and E.

"It's like a horror movie," Henry said in a low voice, easing the door shut behind them. The quiet click creaked through the house.

It was like a horror movie, but it was about to get much worse. Stepping in to the house, there was a small walkway, a place to leave their shoes if they were so inclined. There were hooks for their keys by a lightswitch and stairs right before the area opened up to the living room and true terror.

"Welcome home," Regina said, kneeling in one of her best black skirts along with a white silk shirt and a black blazer on top. It was like she was a present, dressed in her best, but she obviously did not dress herself as it lacked her usual flare. It was like she was muted. She had her head bowed, as if she was submitting to them.

While Emma's stomach roiled, a frisson shot through her. _Oh, hell no! Don't even think about that bullshit_. There was already enough going on without inappropriate thoughts from stress.

"Mom!" Henry rushed Regina and yanked her into a hug. The motion unleashed an unholy rattle from Regina. _The hell was that? _Emma hoped it was not what it sounded like.

Henry did not seem to notice the sound, too overjoyed to see his mom relatively unharmed. It probably did not register to him that it took his mom a few only seconds to return his embrace. She rattled again as she moved to hug Henry back.

"We were so worried about you!" Henry pulled away just enough to see Regina, but he clearly did not actually see Regina.

Regina's eyes were down. There was no fire. Somehow, Regina was no longer larger than life. Her outfit, while prim and proper, seemed to fit her wrong as Emma studied her closer. _What the hell did they do to her?_

"They didn't hurt you, did they? They said they weren't and they are heroes, but they did almost execute you according to them, so…" He had to pause for a breath and his eyes sparkled with unshed tears.

"I'm fine," Regina answered, her bottom lip, painted pretty and red, trembling. Her eyes wet, flooded with tears that slid down her face. She caressed Henry's cheek and the sound must have finally reached his ears.

Henry's gaze fell on Regina's wrist. "Mom, what's that?"

Regina dropped her arm like she wanted to throw it away. She had shackles on her wrists. Thick, iron manacles with what looked like brass locks dangling from them with a couple of chain links. There were lines and grooves etched in the dark metal, which had a faint blue glow. As Emma came closer and peered around Henry's body, she saw Regina also had a collar around her neck. It was thick, too, taking up a good deal of Regina's neck and had to be at least half an inch think. It was iron as well with a lock hanging off the front.

"Regina, why are you here?" Emma asked as her parents words echoed in her head. _All of your things will be at your new house when you get off work_. No, no, no. There was no way they meant… but, then again, they did not think it was weird to live in Regina's house. They might have given her someone's house. They spoke of "spoils of war" and Enchanted Forest justice.

Regina glanced at Emma before her eyes fell to the floor. "I am here to serve you."

"Mom?" Henry took a step back, eyes wide, body shaking. A few tears leaked down his cheeks.

"Regina, that's not funny. What the hell is going on?" Emma made a fist and frowned so hard she felt like she might break her teeth.

Regina sighed. "It's not meant to be funny. It's the truth."

Emma growled and punched her fist into her palm. "Stop fucking around! This isn't funny and Henry's right here!" The poor kid looked like he was ready to run off. At this rate, she would not be far behind him. _Who the hell gives a person a fucking person?_

Regina's eyes flashed. "I can see that. Now, if you could watch your language since he is right here."

"I'm not watching a damn thing!" Emma threw her hands around. "They gave us a fucking house that for all we know used to belong to somebody and now you're here with the chunkiest fashion accessories known to man and this all supposed to be cool or something! So, what the actual fuck?" Her chest heaved as she tried to take in more air, as if that would help her process any of the madness surrounding her.

They had been gone for a week and it was like the Earth had been flipped on its side. Storybrooke was crumbling, dirty, and pretty much lawless. Random royals were now in charge. Her parents were her age and did not seem to even want to be friends with her now. She was kind of homeless in a way she had never been before since she had never an actual home before. And, instead of living in Maine, it would seem they would live some secret fairytale, medieval world where they made up the rules as they went along. This was not cool.

Regina's mouth became a thin line. "Let's go sit down and I'll explain this." She climbed to her feet, as graceful as always, but the locks on her bonds provided eerie music with it.

Emma could not help glancing at Regina's legs, wanting to see if there were chains there as well. Regina's ankles and feet were bare, not just of shackles, but in general. No stockings, no shoes. She moved lightly, gliding across the maple hardwood floor like everything was normal. She did not look back, like they were supposed to follow her, like this was nothing.

Henry did not move, frozen in place. Emma took him around the shoulders and that jump started him enough to move forward. They stepped into the living room, finding it completely furnished with a sectional red sofa, coffee table, television, and other items. Regina stood before the coffee table, like she was presenting the hot chocolate and donuts waiting there. Emma eased Henry down to the couch.

"So, explain," Emma said, doing her best to ignore the food on the table. "Before we have to pick Henry up off of the floor."

"Where have you been the past two days? What's going on? Why are you wearing those? Why don't you have shoes on?" Henry jumped up, but fell back down before he made it to his full height. He sighed and slumped over, leaning into Emma. She kept her arm around him, supporting him.

Regina took a breath. "In simple terms, I'm much like this house."

"Stolen?" Emma arched an eyebrow.

"A spoil of war. I am your servant," Regina replied.

"Servants don't wear those." Emma motioned to Regina's arms.

There was silence. Regina fiddled with her blazer sleeves, like she wanted to stretch the material over her wrists. Emma was not sure the day could get worse. Her throat burned like she was about to throw up and she itched, like she wanted to peel her skin off. Was this what winning felt like?

-8-8-8-8-

Regina burned with shame and fury as she tried to hide her damned iron shackles. It was impossible. They were too thick and her sleeves would never be long enough. She felt like she might retch as her stomach turned itself inside out and her throat burned like she ingested acid beforehand. Her jaw would not stop trembling no matter how much she tried to keep it together. She fought down her instinct to use her magic. _Remain calm. You lived without magic for twenty eight years. You can continue. You need to do so for Henry_.

Her eyes fell to Henry, who was the color of rancid milk. She did not expect him to take her chains so hard. Part of her was flattered. He loved her enough to be disturbed for her. But, the rest of her was mortified. She did not want to his villain and scar him anymore. She did not want him to react like this.

She wanted to reach out and hold him, but she was not sure how Henry would take it. What would he do if he felt her manacles against him? At least Emma had the presence of mind to hold him. _See, he's safe with her. You made the right decision. You can trust Emma_.

"Mom, what happened?" Henry's voice cracked as he asked that question for what felt like the hundredth time. "What do mean you're a servant?" He sniffled and wiped away tears.

"Storybrooke's new government has decided that to the victor goes the spoils. I, the dethroned, deposed Evil Queen, are among those. It's considered protocol in the Enchanted Forest for the warrior that defeated me to receive me," Regina replied.

"As what? A slave? Fuck that!" Emma was on her feet now, swiping at the air with both hands. "I don't want a fucking slave!" This reaction was not surprising. Emma was not comfortable with most things from the Enchanted Forest.

"Calm down. I'm not a slave. I'm a servant," Regina replied. _You can play with words all you like, but you're a slave. You had it coming_.

"Oh, so you're getting paid?" Emma's eyes dared her to lie.

Regina glared at Emma. "Of course I'm not being paid." Prisoners of war did not get paid, but they typically did not get to stay with their sons either. That was the most important thing about this punishment. _Those fools thought it would hurt me to see Henry with Emma, loving Emma in a way he might never love me. I don't give a damn. I just want to be near him_.

"Mom, that's a slave!" Henry threw his hands up.

"No, I'm here of my own free will," Regina replied. She was not a slave. She was there voluntarily.

"Are you wearing chains of your own free will, too?" Henry's gaze narrowed to her wrists.

Regina tugged at her sleeves again. _Damn, I need a longer fit_. "Yes, I am, as a matter of fact."

"Why?" Henry's voice was loud, like when he used to accuse her of lying. Regina flinched.

Emma frowned and shook her head. "To be close to Henry."

Regina dropped her head. "Yes."

"Mom, no!" Henry rushed her and grabbed her biceps. "You can't be a slave for us just to be near me!"

"I would do anything to be near you!" Regina could not believe he still did not understand. "Did I not face down and devour a god for you?" Regina had put her hand in Peter Pan's chest and watched him turn to dust, felt the sand that was once his form run between her fingers, all for her son. They did not know she had reached into depths she never touched before to dispatch Pan. "I would do anything for you."

"Mom…" Henry's voice faded.

"Henry, I would do anything for you. Anything." Regina wished she could tell him how she almost ripped herself apart to take down Pan, but he did not need to know those things. Emma looked at her, looked through her. Emma had an idea.

"So, what they offered you this or…" Emma shrugged.

"I could be enjoying my finest cell in the basement of the hospital, still decked out with my new accessories, of course." Regina could even admit there was some justice in her spending eternity in her own dungeon. The Royal Council had better ideas, though. They had made her the lowest of the low, but she would take it. She would not bend or break for them. They more played into her hands than she did theirs.

Emma took a deep breath and ran both hands through her hair. "Okay, explain to us how this is expected to work." She flopped back down on the sofa. Her hands remained in her head and Henry leaned into her. They both watched Regina, like they expected her to vanish at any moment.

Regina twisted her right cuff with her left hand before holding both up on display. "These shackles were made by the dwarves, using enchanted iron and pixie dust. They're there to bind my magic."

"They said they needed Gold to help with that."

Regina let out a huff. "Well, yes. He had a spell to add to this. The enchanted iron and pixie dust probably would've been enough, but knowing I defeated Pan, there's the idea they need something a little more powerful to stop me. Rumple had a spell to bind the power of gods."

"Gods? Isn't that a little overboard?" Henry asked.

A week ago, Regina would have agreed with Henry, but now she was not so sure. "They don't seem to think so and it's the Council's call. Now, I'm not a threat and the townspeople won't feel threatened when they see me out and about, should you send me on errands and things. And, they should see me as my punishment is to be your eternal servant." _These insects will be insufferable over my humiliation. To hell with them_. Being with Henry was what mattered.

"A slave," Emma said.

Regina held up a scolding finger. "Servant. By the rules of engagement in the Enchanted Forest, you are entitled to my service after besting me in battle."

"We didn't have a battle!"

"You were part of a war, whether you knew or not. You broke the Curse. You won the war," Regina replied.

"How is that even winning? You were still fighting after I got sucked into the Enchanted Forest! You were still fighting up until the trigger!"

Regina sighed. "And I'm tired of fighting." _No, don't lie to her. She knows when you lie to her_. "I'm tired of being a villain. I surrendered myself to your father, but I did so in your name before the Council. I surrendered to you."

"For Henry?"

Regina shook her head. "Because I trust you. Trust you to see more than the Evil Queen before you. I trust you to let me do this."

No matter what, this needed to happen. Regina might have fight left in her, but she could not go on fighting, not if she wanted her son. _Not if you want to remain close to Emma_. She wanted them more than she wanted to fight, more than she wanted to win.

"I just want a chance to be myself," Regina said, wanting to remind Emma how she wanted to die as Regina. Now, she could figure out what it meant to live as Regina.

"Regina, I can't keep you as my damn slave. Beyond the moral issues, there are legal issues. I know I might not look the part, but I know the law pretty well. Slavery is illegal," Emma replied.

"Except as a punishment, which this is." Regina threw her hands up, displaying her chains. "Even if it wasn't, this went into effect when the Council decided to operate under laws from the Old World."

"Are they not doing that anymore?" Henry asked.

"From what I can tell, they realized the idiocy in trying to completely recreate the Old World here as it would flip the town upside down. Things were barely functional while we were gone." Regina had not been able to get much information, but from the little of outside she was able to see, the town was not faring well under the new system.

Emma nodded. "Yeah, Ruby said they're scrambling to fix a few things already. I didn't stick around for the Council meeting after they let me go about my business, but I can't get any of crooks I caught anywhere because the courthouse is practically empty."

"From what I could gleam, they've been negotiating to get people to stay at their jobs and other things," Regina replied. It sounded like a big mess, big enough to argue about when they were supposed to be sentencing Regina.

Henry snorted. "That explains school." He looked at Regina. "So, you're going to what, live here with us while wearing those things?"

Regina glanced down at her wrists. "It's part of the deal. I am to wear them at all times, for everyone's safety and security."

Emma scoffed and her eyes went hard. She stood up, her hands shaking. "This is a con, isn't it? You told them you'd be my servant because you know I wouldn't want that and Henry isn't going to want to see you in the chains. We know damn well you're not going to let me boss you around. This is just your way of getting off scot free from all of the scheming and crap you pulled."

"They will check with you, probably ad nauseam. If at any point I do something not to your liking, you let someone on the Council know and it's the basement for me. I'm serious about this," Regina replied.

Yes, this was probably the lightest punishment she could receive. It was preferable to the public hanging she had expected, but this was no walk in the park for her. Being in front of her son in chains, hell, in front of Emma in chains was beyond humiliating. And, she could hardly imagine what it would be like to be among the denizens of Storybrooke without her magic. It had not been a walk in the park earlier when they pelted her with garbage after her chains had been applied.

"You can't be. It doesn't make any sense," Emma said.

"I'm a mother who wants to be close to her child. A criminal mother," Regina said.

"A hero, too. You saved Storybrooke," Henry said.

She could not help smiling at him. "After I endangered it. Besides, one save doesn't make up for what I did. I've taken blame for the war, so I'm responsible for the lives lost on both sides. But, it's so beyond that. This was a long time coming, but at least I can be with you… If you'll have me." Regina looked between Emma and Henry.

If Emma turned her away for any reason, Regina was done for. Henry would not forgive her if she fought back and harmed any citizen, so she would have to take whatever they gave her. And, she knew they longed for her blood, for her pain, for her suffering. They would come up with something to hurt her for years. It was too easy to execute her. No, they wanted a punishment to last forever if possible.

"And if we don't, they basically drop a house on you, which you kinda deserve," Emma said. That was fair.

"Emma!" Henry's eyes popped with terror. "You can't mean that!"

"She's using us to con her way out of a punishment. She thinks we'll go easy on her." Emma stared Regina down.

Regina scowled. _It's like Emma's forgotten everything I shared with her in Neverland_. "You think this is easy? To prostrate myself before not only you, but my mortal enemies, the person who destroyed my life, the person who tricked me into killing my own mother? I had to get on my hands and knees to Snow White and her pretender!" Regina's blood boiled as she kneeled to the Royal Council, looked down on by them as if this were forty years ago, and listen as they judged her, as if they were innocent. _We all have blood on our hands, no matter how they wish to ignore it_.

As Regina had been on her knees before them, she bit her tongue, longing to remind them that they had all killed innocents. Maybe not in the hunt for Snow White as she had, but for treason, for harboring known criminals, and for other, lesser offenses. They had watched diseases sweep through their poorer communities and wipe out the populace. They had started wars. They had taken prisoners. They had done many things to keep their kingdoms alive. Her biggest crime was deciding it was time to stop. _Oh, now, you're lying to yourself_. _You know your biggest crime is mass murder. Accept it, so you can accept your punishment with grace and dignity rather than false bravado_.

Emma folded her arms across her chest and took Regina from her thoughts. "This is easier than being in a dark, damp cell, where you belong for all the bullshit you've pulled."

"Excuse me?" Regina reeled back. Where was this coming from? Was this the same woman who sat beside her in Neverland, looking at the sky, wondering why life had come down so hard on both of them, culminating in stealing their son?

Emma glowered at her. "Yeah! This is a fucking walk in the park for you. You know what you did and you expect me to feel sorry for you?"

"I expect you to not toe the line to try to impress your parents." _Low blow_.

Emma flinched. "Yeah, well, I expect you to go to Hell for planning to kill me as a baby!"

"I said I might have!" Now Emma was going to twist her words in Neverland, use them as weapons when she had only wanted to bear herself before someone she made the mistake in believing she could trust. _Never trust anyone_.

"Yeah, well, you should go to Hell for it anyway!"

Regina roared and raised her hand, summoning her fire. Her manacles flashed blue, but she called forth her power anyway. She would teach Emma to say such things in front of their son. She would teach Emma to betray her trust. She would pay Emma back for every single word.

As Regina felt the warm, familiar flames in her palm, it felt like she was being burned from the inside, but not with fire. It was like some unholy force tore through her nerves. She screamed, dropped to her knees, and clawed at her right arm. It was like her blood had been replaced with battery acid and it was eating through her skin and bone.

"Mom!" Henry was by her side in an instant.

Regina wanted to rip her arm off as the sensation raced up into her chest. It stole all of the oxygen from her lungs, from every cell in her. She scratched her throat, trying to force air in. A high pitch ringing in her ears drowned out all sounds, including her own screams. The world went black as it felt like her bones turned to dust. Then, there was nothing but a void and endless torment. Time was meaningless, only torture existed. As the pain subsided, she sucked in mouthfuls of air. _You deserved that_.

"What the hell was that?" a voice, maybe Emma, but very muffled asked. It sounded like she was under water.

"The shackles. You saw the flash. She tried to use her magic and that's what happened," Henry replied. He sounded so far away. "Why'd you say all that stuff? Do you really want Mom in a dungeon?"

"She's done worse."

Henry sighed. "So, this it? After all the fighting for her, with her, you're just going to let them imprison her? Even without a trial?"

"I didn't want them to execute her. They didn't."

"You risked your life for her with the trigger."

"Yeah, she was going to die."

"And that doesn't mean anything? You're just…" Henry sighed. It sounded like he gave up. Of course he did. He always gave up on Regina. Emma gave up on Regina. Everyone always gave up on her.

-8-8-8-8-

Emma sighed as she kneeled down to check Regina's pulse. It was still going strong. She did not want to argue with Henry. Glancing at Regina's smoking body, she did not want to deal with Regina either. She had a feeling those shackles could kill her. But, the intent did not seem to be to kill Regina. That should be enough, but the broken look in Henry's eyes told her that was not the case.

"Henry, I don't want this responsibility," Emma said honestly. Not when her heart was still rattling against her ribs after watching Regina drop like a sack of bricks. _Calm down. She's not dead. You shouldn't care anyway_. But, if she did care, it only made sense to care about her kid's mom. Right?

Henry glared at her. "If not you, then who? She trusts you and we both know there's a good person in Mom. We can help bring that out of her without wanting to kill her. You know if you don't accept her, she's as good as dead. Or maybe even worse."

Emma knew he was right, but this was too much. "Do we ever get a chance to be normal?"

Henry gnawed on his bottom lip. "I'm sorry I brought you here."

The apology might as well be a punch in the face and a kick in the chest, as it knocked the wind out of her. Was he sorry for finding her? For bringing her home? For her presence turning his world upside down?

"I'm sorry I let you down," Emma said. She had failed Henry, her parents, hell, even Regina. She wanted to help Regina, but Neverland proved Regina did not need her to get things done. She wanted to protect Regina, and yet Regina was being offered up to her as a slave. She wanted to give Henry a good life, but she could not even give Henry the basics. _You're so fucked up. It's no wonder your parents don't even want to talk to you_.

Henry shook his head. "You haven't. I feel like I hurt you by bringing you here. I don't want to hurt you."

Emma took a breath. "I don't want to hurt you either. I want to give you a good life. I wanted you to have your best chance. It's just so much to deal with."

He nodded and put his hand on her arm. "Can we deal with them together? Maybe even with Mom? Maybe together we can make our own normal."

"I really like the sound of that." That was the truth. This was life now. There had to be some way to make it work. She glanced at Regina. "This is gonna be weird."

"Isn't it always?" There was no lie.

-8-8-8-8-

Next time: an attempt at normal, but so many things, including Regina and Neal, make that hard.


	3. Just Breathe

I don't own these characters; Disney/ABC does.

3: Just Breathe

Emma sat in the living room of her new townhouse, rubbing her temples, trying to figure out how this was her life. Okay, she had her son, whom she loved without a doubt. She had a job she enjoyed, sheriff, not Savior. The savior was irksome at best, a responsibility she had little desire to carry. If things ended there, her head probably would not hurt as much as it did.

"Hell, if things ended there, I'd probably be happy," she said in a low voice. But, even things that should be good in her life were burdens and painful. Like life could only be painful.

She had her parents. She had dreamed of having parents all her life. Sometimes, she dreamed of her real parents. Other times, any parents would do. And, yes, sometimes, she even imagined they were the king and queen of some far off land and had a good reason to give her up. They were and they did! Yet, their existence did not fill her with joy.

Instead, there was a hollow ache in her chest and a dull scratch in her bones, always there, never fading. She did not know what to make of it, but could guess why it hummed through her. _It's like they don't want me. They want some fantasy me_. She could understand them having a fantasy of her, like she had of them, but she would accept the real them and be happy. They did not seem to think the same way.

Emma was not sure what she feared more, disappointing her parents by not being the idea or trying to be the idea and failing. _Well, haven't you tried being the idea and failed, which is why they don't want you. You couldn't break the Curse right and you can't even be on their side when it comes to their enemies!_

Regina's voice pulled her from her thoughts. "Emma, do you want something?"

Emma blinked and saw Regina standing before her. Regina and her shackles, her collar; the signs of her slavery. Regina was Emma's slave. Regina, the mother of her son, the one who saved Henry, was her slave. This was more than she knew what to do with. It felt like the walls were closing in, her vision was fuzzy, and the air felt heavy, thick. It was like she was about to be crushed.

Emma jumped to her feet. "I need to go out!" She needed to clear her mind, figure something out, or at least take a breath.

"Anything you want for dinner before you do?" Regina asked.

Emma's fist clenched. "You don't have to cook." _You don't have to be my slave. It's wrong_.

Regina's eyes softened somehow. How could her eyes be so soft when she had on a collar? How could this woman who seemed like she could do anything be in a collar? "We have to eat."

"We can get takeout. We'll call when I get back." Emma hustled out of the front door and practically ran to the end of the block.

Once there was some distance between her and that house, between her and Regina's collar, eased aches in her bones. For less than a second, she worried about leaving Henry with Regina. Henry was clearly disturbed to see his mother in chains, as he should have been. That was a shitty thing to spring on him. It was like her parents did not think Henry would care. Regina was his mother for crying out loud!

"I'm not surprised they don't get that," she said with a sigh as she scrubbed her face with her hands.

Her parents did not seem to get parenting exactly. Back in Neverland, Mary Margaret's selfish lament about not being able to raise Emma echoed in her ears, growing until it pounded at the front of her skull like a spiked battering ram. How could her own mother not despair over what she had gone through in life? Why was it only Mary Margaret's pain that mattered?

Those thoughts were joined by Mary Margaret's decision to stay behind with David if need be when they found out he was poisoned and dying. Yeah, things did not come to that, but it still hurt. Her mother was ready to abandon her without a discussion on how she might feel. They had not even asked her to stay! It was like they did not want her around and would use any excuse to be rid of her. David was no better.

David had been ready to go back to the Enchanted Forest with or without Emma. Once again, there had been no discussion with her. Not if she wanted to go, not what the place was like, not what they would do with her once they got there. Nothing. They just knew what they were going to do and she did not factor in. It was like she was nothing, even when trying to be something, trying to be anything they wanted. Meanwhile, "_Henry is everything!"_

As she recalled Regina's words, the look in her eyes, it eased some of the tension in Emma's head and chest. She was not sure why. Maybe it was the truth in the words. Henry was everything. Or, at least she wanted him to be everything. _If he's everything, would you care about your weird ass parents?_

"Hey, Emma, wait up!" a voice that sounded suspiciously like Neal Cassidy's called out to her. _Where the hell am I for Neal to be around?_

Emma looked up and to her right. It was Neal. _Ugh_. If she never saw him again, it would be too soon, but with her luck, he was probably going to stay in Storybrooke. Of course with her luck, she would probably get to watch him repair his relationship with his stupid, conspicuously free father while her relationship with her parents withered and rotted. _Really, you don't even have a relationship with your parents_.

The truth of that hit harder than having to see Neal. It was like a punch to the gut and knocked whatever wind out of her that she managed to get. She did not want to think about David and Mary Margaret. Maybe they just wanted to be friends with her and she should be able to deal with it. She was twenty-eight, soon to be twenty-nine. She had not had parents her whole life. She should be able to get on without them. _Stop thinking about it_.

"What do you went, Neal?" Emma asked against her better judgment as he trotted over to her from across the street. Talking to him appealed more than letting her thoughts reign over her head.

"I feel like we need to talk about some stuff," he replied, kicking a can from the sidewalk as he stood before her.

Emma scoffed, watching the can rather than Neal for a long moment. Papers and empty cups blew in the street, seeming to have more direction than she did. "Like you going to Hell and never coming back? I'm in favor of it. If you could start now, that would be great."

He had the nerve to pout, like his feelings were hurt. Well, then again, he seemed to think only his feelings mattered. It was easy to see how he was Gold's son.

He put his hands in his pockets, like trying to appear so cute and pathetic. "Don't be that way, Emma. We've got a lot to talk about. I mean, we have a whole kid. That's crazy." He chuckled for some reason, like he was crazy.

With a frown, she gave him her best glare to make sure he understood he needed to stay the hell away from Henry. "Henry's none of your business. Henry stopped being your business when you walked out of my life."

"Oh, come on!" He threw his arms out to the side. "I didn't even know about that. I mean, him. I didn't know about him."

She sucked her teeth. "And that makes everything okay?"

"Come on." He grabbed her hand and that was the straw that broke the camel's back.

Emma did not realize she punched Neal until her hand snapped back and her knuckles throbbed. Neal had his hand over his nose and was on the ground, taking a knee. Her chest heaved as she noticed droplets of blood painting the dirty concrete. Some time later she knew she would feel good about that, but right now she felt overloaded, overwhelmed, suffocating, drowning.

"Don't fucking touch me ever again! I don't care what bullshit you tell yourself to keep your fucking delusions, but leave me and my kid out of them. You made me a fall guy and you abandoned us. End of story!" Emma turned around and rushed away, leaving one problem for another.

"Emma!" Neal wisely did not follow her.

-8-8-8-8-

Regina watched Emma leave and dread crept into her, squeezing like barbed wire around every bit of her. It felt like abandonment, even though it should not. She could hear Emma's harsh words from earlier exploding in her mind. Emma did not want her here. Emma just did not want her dead and that should be enough, but it was not. Emma did not want her, did not want her around their son. _You were a fool to think she cared_.

Regina tried to shake that away. She did not care about how Emma felt about her. This was all about being close to Henry. Henry was everything and she would do anything for him. But, then again, he did not seem to want her any more than Emma did. _No, Henry doesn't want you dead. He cares. This is just a lot_.

It was too much for her, so she could hardly imagine what it was like for any "normal" person. She was not sure how this might turn out. Her fingers went to her collar. _Please…_

"Mom?" Her hand dropped at the sound of Henry's voice.

Regina turned to face her son and studied him, needing to see if he loved her. It was hard to tell. How could she tell if anyone loved her? No one had ever loved her in her life beyond Daniel. And she was so insignificant that she told Emma that and Emma did not care now that they were back in the real world. She did not matter. _Stop thinking about it_.

"Yes, dear?" Regina said, trying to force out a smile for Henry. It was impossible. She might never smile again.

"Did Emma leave?" He looked in the direction of the front door.

"Not forever. Just for some air," Regina answered, amazed how steady her voice was when it felt like everything inside of her turned to dust. _You've become quite the accomplished actress, my dear_.

"You sure?" His eyes drifted to the coffee table. "She left her keys."

"Proving she'll be back. She can't drive with no keys." But, with the way Emma looked like a caged animal, she might just run across the town line and never look back. Henry would never forgive Regina for that. _He doesn't want you. He wants his real mother_.

He shrugged, his eyes roaming the floor. "I guess."

"Have you explored the house?" she asked to change the subject. She wanted to make things as normal as possible for him.

His face twisted a bit as he turned to the stairs. "There's only two bedrooms."

"Excuse me?" In a townhouse this size, there would not only be two bedrooms. That did not make any sense.

Henry's face scrunched up more and he scratched the back of his head. "There's only two bedrooms. Well, two rooms with beds in them. My old bed's in one of them. Then, a room that could've been a bedroom looks like an office and another looks like a game room. There's a ping-pong table in it, but none of us play. Anyway, you don't have a bedroom."

It was true. She did not think they would make it so obvious when they set up the house, though. "Well, Henry, I'm a servant."

He scowled at her. "That's BS, Mom! Even servants have rooms. What do they expect you to sleep on the floor?"

Regina sighed. _Look, he cares. Did you think you could get around explaining everything that came along with this deal? Be happy he cares._ "It's nothing to trouble yourself over."

"Yeah, it is. I need to know where you're supposed to stay. I need to know what to expect if Emma does decide to leave town."

Regina swallowed around a lump in her throat and her heart felt like it was a cat's scratching post. "You wouldn't… you wouldn't leave with her?" Henry had made it very clear who he preferred as a parent. Why would he not go with Emma?

Henry's shoulders dropped as he released a long exhale. "You're not a bad guy anymore, Mom. You saved the town. You saved me." He tapped himself in the chest with both hands. "I mean, yeah, you killed Peter Pan, but to hear Emma tell it, there was no other way and you got us all out of Neverland. You've done so much and it seems like… well, like you just need someone to have faith in you. And I have faith in you now." He smiled and it lit up the world as far as she was concerned.

Regina felt like her heart came to life for the first time in a long time. She felt alive, not like she did while going back and forth with Emma, but in a light way instead of a burning passion. It was nice. _This makes it worth it, even if Emma doesn't come back, even if Emma decides to give me back to the Council. This is enough_.

"Thank you, Henry," she said.

He smiled, even more. "No need to thank me, Mom. I love you."

The words hit her like a thunderbolt. Her knees wobbled and she put her hand to her chest. Henry loved her. He said he loved her. To her.

"Mom, are you okay?" Henry was at her side.

"I think I need to sit down." She felt faint.

Henry took her by the hand and guided her to the sofa. He eased her down as if she were made of glass. She appreciated the care.

"Is it your shackles? When they zapped you earlier, I thought you died. I was really scared. Emma knew to check your pulse and all that," he said.

"No, it's not the shackles and they're not designed to kill me, just to make sure I can't use my powers." And to stop her if she tried. She had expected it to feel like her skin was being peeled off piece by piece.

"The way you screamed when they zapped you…" he trailed off and stared, eyes on the wall, but well beyond. "I got so scared." He grabbed her hand and squeezed, shaking in her grip.

Was this the same child who watched her absorb a death curse and left her right after to eat with his blood relatives while she was at death's door? Had he matured in such a short time? Had Neverland and nearly dying done that to him? And even though it was good to know he loved her, she still felt like she failed him as a mother. _He shouldn't know such anguish_.

"You know you haven't told me you love me since you were seven," Regina said. _Really, that's what you want to lead with?_ She could not help it, though. She had been so deprived. _Still, this shouldn't be about you. It's about him. That's why you failed as a mother in the first place. He's everything, not you_.

He sighed, sounding as if he deflated and the way his shoulders went down that was not far off. "I can believe that. I might've stopped saying it, but I never stopped feeling it. I realize that looking back. I wanted to be right more than anything in the world. But, some things are more important than being right."

It was Regina's turn to sigh. "You're very right about that." He learned the lesson faster than she did.

"I'll make a room for you." Henry hit his fist into his palm.

"You'll have to check with Emma first." She did not want him to do anything that might upset Emma, as Emma might run or send her away. They needed to be careful Emma, like a landmine. _And we need to be careful of Henry_.

He looked at her like she was an idiot. "She'll want you to have a room, Mom."

Regina was not sure. "She might view it as conning my way out of my punishment."

"She was in shock, Mom. This is a lot." He spread his arms.

"I know it's a lot." She touched a cuff. _Stop messing with your sleeves. It draws attention_.

Henry's eyes cut to Emma's keys. "Did they give her the key to your shackles?"

"Even if they did, it's on her to use the keys, but I'd advise against it. The townspeople only agreed to me being free because of the irons." She could imagine why they liked the idea of her being able to walk around, but not use her powers. They could do whatever they wished and she could not retaliate in a manner she was used to. She would put up with their nonsense as long as she could be with her son, though.

"We'll figure something out, Mom." He put his arm around her shoulders.

Regina leaned into the contact and her collar grazed Henry's arm. He jumped back, dropping the limb and refused to look at her. Now that she thought about it, he had not looked directly at her throughout the conversation unless it was to reprimand her in some way. _It's the irons_.

"I should start dinner," Regina said. _And think this plan out more than getting to be around Henry, as that still makes it more about me. This is about him and my presence is harming him_.

"You don't have to, Mom. We can get takeout." He offered her a smile.

_I have to concede parts of him now belong to Emma_. "Nonsense. I'm sure you've had takeout since you've been back. I'll make something." She was up before he could object. The space and quiet would give her a chance to think this out more.

Henry did not follow and Regina made herself busy in the kitchen. Thankfully, the Royal Council had allowed her to go grocery shopping to help prepare the house for Emma. They also got to see the havoc they wrought in trying to restore people to positions of power without considering how the town would function as they shuffled the deck. The supermarket looked like it belonged in a post-apocalyptic movie. No one had been working and the shelves had been raided. People had fought over scraps. After dealing with her and witnessing that mess, the all knowing Council urged people to stay in their positions. She could only wonder how that worked out.

Shaking her head, she would not worry over it. It was not her problem. Her problem was Henry and how to avoid causing him more harm when all she wanted to do was be a better mother. It seemed like no matter what she did, she only hurt him. _Maybe it would be better if I just let them do away with me. Surely he could heal from that_. But, she could not. She did not want him to heal from her death and have most of his memories of her be that of a villain. _I want to be his mother_.

She had barely started on their dinner before she heard the front door open and close. She looked out of the kitchen, locked eyes with Emma, who paused, but did not say anything. Green eyes were hard, but cracked somehow, like she stared into the void and did not like what she saw, but could not stop staring.

Regina wanted to talk to Emma, like they had done in Neverland, but she understood now. Neverland was another world. It did not count. So, there was nothing to talk about. Regina continued cooking.

-8-8-8-8-

Emma needed to be alone, needed to gather herself, needed to forget that fucker Neal ever existed. The house had a backyard. She rushed through the sliding door and inhaled as deeply as she could. It was like she could not get enough air into her lungs. She could not breathe. Somehow, what was home about a month ago was now a straitjacket, strangling the life out of her.

Added to Neal thinking he could be in her life, she had freaking slave Regina making dinner in the kitchen of her war gift house. She had a son she needed to take care of and birth parents who wanted her as much as her adoptive parents had. How long until they had a baby to replace her? _Dude, no. Don't do that to yourself_. She groaned and squatted down as far as she could go and did her best to breathe. Her life was a mess. She was a mess.

"Emma, you okay?" Henry asked.

Emma glanced up to see Henry's head poking out of the door. She rubbed the top of her head. "I wanna lie to you." _I wanna lie to myself_.

His eyes glistened. "I don't want you to."

"I know you don't, but I'm the adult and your mother. I'm not supposed to burden you." She was nothing but baggage right now, more baggage than she thought possible. She still had barely processed magic was real and now there was all of this crap.

He poked out his lip a little bit. "I can see you drowning, though."

The world could see her drowning. "I think I need some time to make sense of stuff."

"You're not going to leave, right?"

"Oh, Henry." Emma climbed to her full height and grabbed him into a hug. "I'm not leaving you ever." She could run from a lot of things, but not him. Not after almost losing him twice.

Henry relaxed in her arms and returned the embrace. "Good to know. I'm not overwhelming you, right?"

She gave him a tight squeeze. "Never you. I love you so much, kid. I'm happy I get the chance to be your mother." In fact, it was a dream come true. She would not trade Henry in for the world. _Henry is everything_. He had always been everything, which was why she put him up for adoption. "Hey, kid, can you do me a favor?"

"Anything."

"Tell me about your childhood." Maybe she could hear something nice in the middle of this madness and it would help her breathe.

He smiled. "Sure. You wanna do it out here?"

Emma looked around at the yard space. It was like nothing she had seen growing up in big cities. More like it was straight out of a commercial. Where they stood was cut stone and a few feet away was a grass area the size of a meadow. Bushes lined the fences and there was an in ground pool with some stone work, like a fountain or something at one end. It was a dream. It was a war gift.

"Yeah, the air's nice," Emma said as she eased back down to the ground. It was nice and she needed to get used to it. It was life.

Henry sat down next to her. "It is. The backyard's nice."

"Not as big as your old house."

He shook his head. "Nope. Still pretty big, though. Maybe Mom will start a garden. I used to garden with her."

Emma glanced at him. "I could see that." And she could. He probably had his own set of gloves and a little hat. It was probably cute as hell. _Regina might have pictures and I could see them_.

A small smile settled on his face. "It was fun. I had my own little section to grow whatever I wanted. For some reason, I never got my pineapple tree." HIs smile grew into a massive grin.

She laughed. "Pineapples, huh?"

"They're good. Mom tried to explain to me why my pineapples wouldn't work, but even at six, I was determined to prove her wrong."

She tilted her head. "Why?"

He sighed and shrugged. "I dunno. I like being right?"

"Like most people."

"I think then I just wanted to show her I knew what I was doing. You know, she showed me how to do it, so now I can do it myself."

Emma nodded. "Sounds nice. I never had anyone show me something constructive." Her heart felt a little light knowing her son got to experience that.

"I'm sorry." He looked at her, again eyes big and glistening. "I'm sorry you never got adopted."

She gave him a small smile. "I'm glad you did."

"Even if it was by the Evil Queen and got you dragged into this mess?"

She tossed her arm over his shoulder and grinned at him, pulling him close. "Yeah, even with all that. You led me home, kid. I'm home." As she spoke the words, her heart finally stopped feeling set to collapse in on itself. This was home, even with all the problems. It had the people she cared about, people she wanted to protect, people who loved her, and people she loved. It was home.

"I'm glad you're home." Henry gave her a squeeze.

"Despite it all, me too. And I'm sorry about earlier with your mom. I didn't mean to sound so harsh."

"I know Mom's done bad stuff, but she's done good stuff, too. One doesn't cancel out the other, but she's still my mom and I want her to have a chance."

She nodded and gave him another squeeze. "I completely agree." She saw the good in Regina and wanted to bring it out. She wanted to be there for Regina, like in Neverland, like in the mine. Hell, like when she pulled Regina from the fire.

He stared at her for a really long time. "So, what are we going to do with her?"

Emma shrugged. "I'm not sure yet. I mean, yeah, she's gonna stay with us, but I don't want to keep her as a slave. That's not cool."

"It's not. You might have the keys to take the chains off. They would be with the house keys."

Emma nodded and rubbed her chin. "Should we take the chains off, though? Hear me out, kid. I don't want your mom as a slave, but the chains take away the thing that makes her a serious danger. No magic, maybe no violence."

He let out the most disappointed groan and it tore into her. "So, you don't think she can change?"

"I think we all have the potential to change. We have to see what Regina wants to do." She had hope, but she hoped before and Regina bit them in the ass. She did not want to think Regina's nature was like that of a scorpion, but she struck out and stung whenever she had a chance. Neverland gave her some insight on that, but she was not sure how to get Regina to be the person they all wanted her to be.

Henry nodded, accepting that. It was good enough for him and it was good enough for her. It seemed like she really did need to talk, even if it was simple like this. An ache lifted from her bones and she was able to take that easy breath she longed for. They sat in a comfortable silence, enjoying the fresh air.

Regina called them in for dinner not too long after. The meal was set up on the table, which had a tablecloth and a centerpiece and plates. None of which belonged to Emma.

"Is this stuff from your house?" Emma asked.

Regina nodded. "They let me take items you probably didn't have and they didn't want. My linens are also here."

Emma nodded. "Good call." She owned one set of bed sheets, after all, and had no idea where they were. She sat down next to Henry.

"You don't want to sit at the head of the table?" Regina motioned to the empty seat.

Emma's head wrinkled. "Does it matter?" _Seems like some Enchanted Forest bullshit and I definitely don't want that in here_.

"Well, I suppose not. Where would you like me to sit?" Regina asked.

Emma shook her head. "Don't do that. Me and the kid are creeped out enough."

Regina glanced at Henry. "Sorry. I'm just trying to do the right thing." She sat down in the seat across from Henry.

"We are, too. So, we're going to see if any of the keys they gave me open those chains," Emma said and Henry's face lit up. "And if anybody has a problem with that they can come see me."

"Are you sure that's the right thing to do? Part of my agreement is to wear the irons," Regina said.

"Well, they gave you to me and made you my responsibility. Part of that's gonna be no chains. It's freaky and we don't like it." Emma pointed to herself and then Henry, who nodded.

"And you're willing to trust me with my magic, even after what happened earlier?" Regina asked.

"Yeah. I don't think you should get hurt to the point you pass out and we're scared to touch you because you might be dead or seriously hurt if you use magic. That's not the way to go about encouraging a person to be better," Emma replied. It was a good way to take years off of her and Henry's lives.

"But, you have to show us you're trying to be better," Henry said. He did not look at Regina, eyes focused on the table.

Emma knew then that she had to take the chains off. Henry was so disturbed by them, he could not even look at his mother. Emma got up and went to find her keys. Thanks to her mind being total chaos at the time, she had no idea where she left them.

"Henry, my keys?" Emma scanned the living room. She had no idea where to start. The room was the size of her old apartment. _This is too much. No, no, no. Focus on what you're doing right now_.

"Coffee table!"

As soon as the words left his mouth, she spotted them. Grabbing the keys, she rushed back to Regina and Henry. "Hold up your hands, Regina."

"Are you sure?" Regina asked.

"I refuse to spend another second where our son can't look at his mother, the woman who saved his life," Emma replied. It was not right.

There were no more arguments and Emma unlocked each bond with the same weird looking double-sided key. At least they made it obvious. Emma then took the irons and walked them out of sight. Regina made a nice dinner and they would enjoy it without any more trauma, dammit!

-8-8-8-8-

Next time: well, maybe some more trauma.


	4. Stoned

I don't own these characters; Disney/ABC does.

4: Stoned

Dinner was quiet and clumsy, but Regina did not mind. Conversation was stilled, but Emma and Henry enjoyed the food. That was enough for her. Emma and Henry deserved whatever small comforts they could find. They were also able to retire to clean rooms with made beds and bathroom necessities waiting. It was the least she could do.

"You want help?" Henry asked as Regina began moving empty dishes from the table.

"No, no, no. It's fine. It's been a long day for both of you. I've got this." Regina meant that and got to work. She glanced at Emma, who stared off into the distance. "Maybe you and Emma could find something to watch on television."

"I wonder if that's someone's TV…" Emma muttered. Henry's eyes went wide and grabbed Emma by the hand. He helped Emma to her feet and she dragged, like she had the weight of the world on her back. Regina was able to finish before they were out of the dining room.

Henry snapped his finger, as if just hit by an idea. "Wait, Mom, you still don't have a place to sleep,"' he said as they all made their way from the cleared table to the living room.

Emma blinked. "You don't have a room?" She squinted at Regina. "Not even in the basement… or attic if this place has one?"

Henry scowled at Emma. "There's only two bedrooms. The rest are different types of space."

"What do they expect you to sleep on the floor?" Emma said and then her eyes went wide. "Of course they do. Why'd I even ask?" She threw her hands up.

Regina decided against telling Emma where she was truly meant to sleep as a slave. She doubted Emma would figure it out, which was good. There had been enough trauma for the day.

"I'll be fine on the couch," Regina said.

Emma shook her head. "No, you should take my bed. I've slept on the couch plenty of times, couches that aren't nearly this nice. Hell, slept on a park bench a few times, too."

Regina cocked an eyebrow. _Selflessness is in her blood, even if she doesn't think so_. "Emma, need I remind you, I'm being punished." It was one thing for Emma to exercise her rights as Regina's owner and remove the irons, but quite another for Emma to concede luxury areas to Regina.

"We'll clear at a room for you tomorrow, Mom," Henry said.

"We could do it now." Emma clapped her hands together and then squared her shoulders. For a moment, Regina had a flashback of Emma's bare arms in Neverland, but she managed to get a grip in an instant.

Regina shook her head. "It's been a long day for all of us. Go have a hot shower and sleep. We'll worry about everything else tomorrow." She shooed them away. They were worn out enough to do as she directed without realizing they had been planning to go to the couch.

There was a lot of nonsense grumbling, but Emma and Henry climbed the stairs, feet dragging and each time they hit a step it sounded like they might go through it. She could tell they hit the upstairs landing as it had a different, more solid sound than the stairs.

"Goodnight," Regina said.

"Goodnight," they both replied.

As soon as she heard doors close, Regina sighed and her body felt like it might collapse in on itself. She had to sit down or she would fall down and if she fell down, she feared she might never get up. Emotional did not begin to cover the day.

She found a chair at the table and collapsed into it. She buckled over and put her hand over her mouth as a sob escaped her throat. Tears burned her eyes and she did not bother to wipe them as they scorched a path down her cheek. It did not matter. More tears would replace any she removed. She could feel it, like everything inside of her needed an out, if only for a moment. It was either cry or explode.

She felt like such a mess, in both a good and bad way. Sitting down for dinner with Emma and Henry was nothing short of beautiful. Surrendering was more than worth it if she could have more moments, maybe even days like that. How had she survived without moments like that? Well, she had a few of them for roughly seven years.

Maybe she and Henry could get back to that now that she did not have a curse to protect. Looking back, the Curse never should have been a priority once she had Henry. Henry should have been enough. _He is enough_.

_This would've been enough_. She shivered as her mother's final words echoed through her. She had been her mother, even though every bit her wanted to rebel against Cora. Henry had not been enough, but now he would. Henry was everything… and Emma was extra.

Surrendering forced her to face facts. She trusted Emma. She did not trust another soul. She was even wary of Henry. Emma was another creature, almost of mythological status to her, and she did not know what to make of her. What she could figure out, though, was no matter how she tried to argue it, she was Emma's slave.

She had gone from a princess to a queen, from the mayor and master of Storybrooke, to an outcast and slave. Complete with physical bonds. Her eyes drifted to wrists. Her skin was already red and raw. It itched down in a place she would never be able to scratch. Everything had been fit tight to punish her, but this was more. It gnawed at a power that slew Peter Pan, a power they were all right to fear. She had accepted it because the woman who hunched over her child's dead body only wanted more time with him. She just wanted her son and that little extra bit. It felt so good. She needed nothing else.

"Please don't ruin this," Regina said, begging whatever it was inside of her that liked to destroy any and all good in her life. Then, for some reason, her life decided to flash before her eyes. "Oh, god, it's me. I ruin everything."

She had never realized that, but now while she was a jumbled blob of emotions. It was easy to blame Snow White. It was easy to say when merely looking at everything that happened to her, but she had not almost lost her son because of those things. She had almost lost her son due to her warped perception that her curse, her revenge was more important. She had not lost sight of what was important with Henry. No, she had lost sight years, decades, lifetimes go.

"You used to be different. You used to be a person who would save a girl from a runaway horse and not have a scheme at play for her. You allowed Snow White to kill her just as you allowed her to use you to kill your mother. You've given her too much control. You should be you, like you wanted in the mine. You've only wanted to be yourself for so long." The only problem was she was not exactly sure who she was. But, she had time now to figure out.

She could stop being the villain for Henry, Emma, and maybe most importantly herself. She did not want to be a villain and she was certain whoever she was deep down was not a villain. A bitch maybe, but not a villain. Who was Regina? It was time to find out.

Regina took a deep breath and felt renewed strength in her system. She gathered herself up, cleaned up the rest of the mess from dinner and went to make up the couch to sleep. With that out of the way, she took a shower in the main bathroom, scrubbing hardest at her wrists. It burned, but it felt like the areas needed a true cleansing. After that, she had to get used to the plainest clothing she had ever had the displeasure to meet.

Once she had on her white bloomers and bra, she wiggled into heather grey yoga pants and matching tunic. She felt shapeless in it. But, that could work to her advantage. She could shape herself into who she felt she should be without distraction. She went to her bed for the night and settled in under the blanket on the couch.

As she stared at the ceiling, she thought on Emma upstairs. She had been a mess all day and then decided to trust Regina without her irons. What brought Emma to that conclusion? Did she truly believe Regina could change or was she too disturbed by Regina's bonds, by evidence that she owned a person to handle it? _I wonder if she noticed the bolt in the corner of her bedroom wall_. Probably not. And Emma probably would not know what it was for. Regina rubbed her neck. She was lucky for once.

-8-8-8-8-

Emma woke up to the smell of bacon and was certain she was having a stroke. Sitting up, she felt fine. She could move with no problem, no tingling in her left arm. She was fine, so why did she smell bacon?

"Regina," she said, falling back against her pillow. Regina was downstairs and probably made breakfast, like a good mom or like a good servant.

Emma did not want to deal with outside or inside right now, but did not have a choice. She could not just stay in bed and she could not flee town. So, she got up, washed her face, brushed her teeth, and hoped that was enough fortification to make it through the day, even though a strong breeze might shatter her at this point.

By the time she made her way downstairs, clipping her badge to her jeans, she heard murmuring coming from the kitchen. Pausing to take in the scene, Emma could not control her smile as she watched Henry sitting at the kitchen counter, cutting pancakes and talking to Regina. Regina was focused solely on him, light in her eyes as she hung on his every word. Maybe this was the right decision.

"You made pancakes and bacon?" Emma asked, pulling up a stool next to Henry.

"Breakfast is the most important meal of the day," Regina replied as she slid a plate in front of Emma. Pancakes, bacon, and two fried eggs. Looked as delicious as it smelled.

Emma nodded. "You didn't have to do this."

Regina shrugged. "Henry has to eat breakfast.''

"And you make it every day?" Emma asked.

"I try. I want him to eat healthy when he can," Regina answered.

Emma laughed. "Pancakes and bacon is healthy now?" If that was the case, she had been eating healthy for a long time now.

Henry popped up, not ready to let Emma ruin this for them. "Hey! I need a strong meal to get me through the day." He had the nerve to give her a hard look. "Don't blow this for us. We get french toast tomorrow."

He had a point and that sounded really good. "I just feel a little weird about it."

Regina looked at her with strangely sympathetic eyes. "If it helps, think of it as you getting Henry's scraps. I have to feed him and these are leftovers from making too much."

Emma nodded. For now, she would take it like that. She might get used to Regina cooking, but now was not that time. Still, she enjoyed a hearty breakfast and found herself okay with being up early in the morning thanks to it. She felt a little more grounded than she had yesterday.

After breakfast, Henry went to get his book bag while Emma poured coffee into her tumbler. The aroma had been more than enough for her to have two cups with breakfast, and it tasted even better than it smelled. Regina stood at the sink, doing dishes. Emma chalked it up to another "mom" thing to make it bearable.

Her eyes strayed a bit, taking in Regina's attire. It was nothing like what Regina would wear and because she greeted them yesterday in her own clothes, Emma had not thought about Regina's wardrobe, but she probably lost that, too. Regina's clothes always seemed like part of her and in Neverland, Regina spoke about her outfits like they were weapons. She had been disarmed in this regard as well. _But, her ass still looks great_. While it was not the first time she had the thought, it was still as inappropriate as ever. Not as bad as looking down Regina's shirt in Neverland several times, but not good either.

"Any plans for today?" Emma asked to get her head together.

Regina shook her head. "Just straighten up around here. Maybe call the school to find out what's going on. Henry was telling me about the chaos there and I don't like sending him out into madness."

Emma nodded. "Yeah. I wanted to walk the halls with him yesterday and sit in his classes." That was normal when your kid almost died, right? Well, and when their hometown was a little crazy and looked like it was on the brink of falling apart.

Regina smiled. The expression was small and her eyes glistened. "Sounds like you're coming into your role of Henry's mother."

"Thanks for giving me that chance." At first, Emma meant it as thanks for saving Henry, but after the words left her mouth, it hit her that it was so much more. After Regina let Henry go, even though Emma was not around when it happened, it opened the doors for Henry to become _their_ son, for Emma to become his mother. Before that, Emma was just some reckless person running around, laying a claim to a child who was not hers despite their feelings for each other.

Regina made a noise, something like a grunt, but did not say anything. Maybe there was nothing to say. Regina had been willing to give her a chance. _It's time for me to return the favor_. It was more than pulling Regina out of a fire or coming back for her in the mine. It was about really believing in her. Regina recognized Emma had potential. Regina had potential, too.

"You should get going or you'll both be late," Regina said.

Emma chuckled. "It's cool. I'm my own boss now."

Regina shook her head. "I'll be surprised anything gets done then."

Emma pointed to herself with her thumb. "Hey, I'll have you know I'm a hard worker." She really was, but Storybrooke had not allotted her much chance to show that off. And now that she could, Regina would not even see. _Wait, why would it matter if Regina can see? So, I could rub it in her face, of course_. Yeah, that made sense.

"Yes, hard at work doing nothing." Regina smirked.

Emma laughed. "It's too early for this abuse. Henry, let's go!" She planned to drive him to school until she was certain there was semblance of order to the town.

Henry rushed in, backpack on his shoulder. He grabbed Regina into a hug. "Be good today. Love you."

"Hey, I tell you that." Regina gave him a squeeze. "Be good today. I love you."

Emma and Henry left out and piled into the bug. Emma sighed and smiled at him. "I think this might be all right."

"Me, too."

_Yeah, famous last words_. Still, she started the car and drove Henry to school. It was close enough that if things calmed down and went back to normal, he would be able to walk there on his own. The fact that he did not protest being driven meant he understood the trouble brewing. As she pulled up, she studied the junior high campus. Most of the students seemed to be hanging out in the front. She turned to Henry.

"It wasn't like this yesterday, right?" Emma asked to be sure.

"Not outside. Inside was a bit of a free for all," he answered.

Emma frowned at that. The students here might be in danger. "Stay here. Lemme check it out."

He nodded and she exited the car. The kids watched her as she marched toward the front doors. The problem was easy enough to spot. There was a man blocking the main doors and the principal was screaming at him.

"You can't legally put chains on the doors! You can't keep us out of the school," Principal Orlean put his finger in the other man's face.

The other man's face grew red. "How dare you? I could have you thrown in the stocks!"

"There are no stocks here. We're not in the damned Forest anymore!"

"That doesn't change anything! No one is taking orders from you anymore. We're not cursed and you're nothing."

"What's going on here?" Emma inquired and both men faced her.

"You called the sheriff?" The other man's face turned redder.

"I didn't. I can settle this matter without help." The principal pulled a dagger from his side.

"Whoa!" Emma pulled her gun on instinct and then put her hand up. "Put down the weapon!" She aimed at the principal. _I really don't want to have to shoot someone this early in the morning_.

Principal Orlean shook a little as he held up the blade. "He challenged me! This is for my honor!"

The other man glared at him. "An earl would never bow to a baron!"

"I'm principal." He puffed his chest out.

"Through a curse that's been broken. Your position is invalid."

"If school continues, then I'm still in charge."

The other man glanced at the thick chains on the doors. "Doesn't look like school is continuing."

"You will unlock those doors if you wish to continue to hold your position as assistant principal." The principal pointed the dagger at the other man. The assistant principal apparently. What the hell was going on here?

"Hey!" Emma's throat hurt from how loud she raised her voice. "The Curse might be broken, but you're still here, in Storybrooke, Maine. You're not an earl and a baron. You're educators. A principal and assistant principal with a school full of kids who need you. You're supposed to be here for them." She motioned the gaggle of kids gawking at them, waiting to go into school.

Emma was not surprised by the amount of kids waiting to go to school. She had a feeling the crowd was smaller than the school register, but for some kids, school was probably a safe haven. She knew how that felt. Some of these kids needed to be able to go to school, needed the constancy of school to stay sane.

"You're the adults. You have to do right by them." Emma hoped that worked. Had the Curse put these two men in the school because they cared about kids or because it gave them faux status in the community?

The two men looked at each other and then at the students and then each other again. The principal turned the dagger in his hand and sighed. He handed the weapon hilt first to Emma. She holstered her gun before accepting the blade.

"She's right, Goodwin. We're here and we've got dozens of kids depending on us. This isn't about our titles. It's about these kids," the principal said.

"Then cede the position to me," the assistant principal replied. Oh, great, he was a douchebag. _Wait, these are the two Henry was talking about yesterday_. This problem would probably take more than a morning to solve then.

"Yeah, principal-ships don't work like that," Emma said. "Now, how about you take the chain off the door before I arrest you?"

The assistant principal put his hand on his chest. "I am an earl!"

Emma grabbed her cuffs from her belt loop. "Well, Earl, you're under arrest for criminal trespassing. Lemme see your hands."

"No!" The idiot had the nerve to rush her.

A struggle, if it could be called that, ensued. Emma slammed the assistant principal to the ground with enough force that he lost a tooth and enough audience to get a decent "oh!" as he screamed incoherently. She cuffed him and then searched his pockets for a key to the lock holding the chains together. It was in the breast pocket of his suit jacket. She gave it to the principal and escorted the hollering assistant principal to the Bug. _I might have to just start driving the cruiser if the town doesn't improve soon_. Henry was outside the car, talking to Neal.

"Hey, get away from him!" Emma yanked her prisoner to go faster to get to Henry and Neal. She had to save Henry from that bastard.

Neal turned to her and gave her that damned sleepy smile she used to think was cute. "Hey, Emma."

"Don't hey me! What the hell do you think you're doing?" She huffed, flaring her nostrils as she stood before him. She glared at him as if trying to set him on fire. And, even when she realized she could, at least accidentally, set him on fire, she did not stop staring him down. _If only I paid more attention when Regina was teaching me rather looking down her damn shirt_.

"Just talking to my son about his life," Neal replied.

"He's not your son!" Emma panted, feeling like her heart was about to explode. It was like rocks churned in her stomach and her throat burned with her own fury.

"Emma, stop!'' Henry stepped up. "You sound like Mom now."

"Yeah, well maybe your mom had a point." Emma could not believe she said that, but right now it was very valid for Neal. Neal was dangerous. Not in the sense he would physically harm Henry, but he could do all sorts of psychological damage and Emma would do everything in her power to stop that.

Henry had the nerve to sigh at her, like a fucking adult. "Emma."

"We'll talk about this later. Go ahead to school. I'm working." She nodded to the assistant principal.

"You're arresting Mister Goodwin?" Henry asked.

Emma frowned. "Yeah, it was a whole big thing. Go to school while I handle this. But, call me if anything happens." It seemed like anything could happen if the assistant principal was willing to lock the school to try to gain control and the principal was carrying a dagger. What the hell was the rest of the school staff up to?

Henry did not argue and ran off. Emma ignored Neal as she put the assistant principal in the back of the Bug. She drove off with Neal at her window. She felt very mature for not giving him the finger as she did so. Things did not get better when she got to work.

David was not there. He might not come back now that he was on the Council of Royals. She would need help and Hook was waiting at the station's door. She would not need help to throw him out if necessary.

"Emma, love," Hook said with a smirk and what he wanted to be a sexy swagger.

"Nope!" Emma was not interested. "I've got work." She yanked Mister Goodwin inside and escorted him to the cell. Hook followed. _Kill me now_.

"Come now, love. I've been missing you," Hook said with a purr.

"You just saw me three days ago." When she was hoping he would get on his ship and sail far, far away. Of course, her luck was never that good.

"Aye, awaiting some show of gratitude for helping you."

"Yeah, thanks for getting us to Neverland." That was all he would get out of her, even though she knew what he wanted.

"I was thinking more of a date."

Emma's head hurt and she had to save her sanity. "Not right now. I'm pretty busy. I've got to process my prisoner and everything." She motioned to Mister Goodwin as she slammed the cell door.

Hook arched an eyebrow. "But, you're secured him."

"Yeah, but in this realm, tons of paperwork go along with that." Not that anyone would look at it, but Hook did not know that.

Hook nodded. "When do you think you'll be done?"

She shrugged. "Hard to say. Sometimes, it takes a while."

He accepted that and she breathed a sigh of relief as he left the building. Tension that had coiled around her like a snake let loose for a little while. She got a chance to process her prisoner and got him in touch with his attorney. That was a herculean task, as his lawyer was not a lawyer anymore, but was willing to work something out for Mister Goodwin.

It was after that her new best friend — tension — returned. She got a phone call from a member of the Royal Council demanding Mister Goodwin's release and demanding to know how dare she arrest that man. While she tried to argue why that was not going to happen and he broke the law, the attorney showed up with a court order for his release. Emma could not believe this.

"I guess being an earl still counts for something here," were Mister Goodwin's parting words with a smart-ass smirk.

Emma fought down the urge to punch him, but she was sure the stress of doing so gave her an ulcer. The day did not get better with dozens of calls about any number of nuisances and she could hardly keep up. There were stray dogs digging up yards, people looting shops, graffiti, and several property disputes that did not make any sense. People were actually trying to lay claim to others' houses based on the fact the person was a noble and wanted a "peasant's" house on the grounds that the commoner's home was better and a commoner did not deserve finer things than a noble.

She was grateful to go home even with Regina there. Sure, it was weird, but not as weird as outside. Besides, she was weary. Not even tired, but weary, like she needed to turn off.

"Henry home?" Emma asked as she kicked off her boots. Regina was in the dining room, setting the table already. She could not pick him up from school thanks to the madness of her day.

"Upstairs doing a project. He said you had to arrest the assistant principal today," Regina replied.

"He tried a coup on the school, complete with locking the kids out. Doesn't matter anyway. Dude got a damn pardon or something."

Regina blinked. "Excuse me?"

Emma moved to the sofa, flopping down. She sighed, feeling relief down to her bones. "Yeah, exactly. And I don't know why."

Regina waved it off. "He's a loyalist to a Council member, probably Sax. I don't remember his whole court, but I believe Goodwin was there. Nothing else to figure out."

Emma breathed out a loud breath and threw her head back on the couch. "So, that's how they're going to do business after calling you corrupt?" She shook her head. "This is going to be a shit show."

Regina moved closer, stepping where Emma could see her. "Maybe not. Henry came home with homework. It sounded like there was order in his classes, even though he was worried he only had five classes and there were no more than fifteen students in each of them. But, no one was maimed and it ran like school should."

Emma snorted. "Oh, yeah? We're setting the bar low now. Did he tell you his father popped up being annoying?"

Regina scowled. "What does he want?"

Emma rubbed her eyes. "Same messed up shit I wanted when I first showed up."

Regina groaned and her fingers twitched, but she did not do anything. "What did you do?"

"I told Neal to stay away, but that probably isn't gonna happen, especially since Henry likes the douche."

Regina's shoulders slumped. "What will we do?"

"I dunno. Maybe supervised visits. We don't want Henry sneaking off with him, right?" Neal would encourage it more than she had, probably make it seem like a game, and talk about how fun it was to disobey Henry's mothers.

"Very true."

"Shit show."

"Indeed."

Emma did not want to think about Neal. Regina slipped away while Emma turned on the television. Before she found something to watch, Regina returned and presented Emma with a beer along with some fresh oatmeal cookies. Emma accepted both and Regina sat down next to her.

"This isn't my brand," Emma said before taking a long pull from the bottle.

"You tell me and I'll make a list."

"This servant shit sucks, too." It did not stop her from eating a cookie. It was like heaven in her mouth.

"Don't think of it that way, then. We share a house. Someone has to do the shopping and since you work, it should be me, as I am very much unemployed and won't likely be employed again."

That was one of the few things that made sense, so Emma accepted that. She drank her beer, ate her cookies, and relaxed. At least inside the house, there was order, even if Regina was a slave.

-8-8-8-8-

The second morning Regina sent Emma and Henry off with a full belly — french toast as Henry desired — to face the day. She had outside chores to take care with a shopping list of items provided to her by Emma and Henry. Maybe she would even run into Neal and have a talk with him about stressing out Emma and corrupting Henry, but that would be after a trip to the supermarket. _With luck, there will be some order to the place this time, but I won't hold my breath_.

In truth, Regina could use her magic to create everything she needed. But, she wanted to get out of the house. She was not made for confinement and she suffered from cabin fever easily. So, she had to go out or things would end poorly before a week went by.

Dressing in one of the five outfits she was left with, Regina realized she would have to walk. The Council saw fit to confiscate her car, just to be assholes as far she could tell, or they expected her to stay in the house slaving away. Either way, she had to walk. Emma left her some money, which she did not need, but Emma insisted for whatever reason. She took it to make Emma's life easier.

Her life was not made easier, though. She was barely a few blocks from the house and people were watching her, following her, stalking her. Her stomach fluttered and it felt like ants crawled under her skin. It grew as the amount of people grew.

"How dare she just be out like this!"

"Hey, where's her shackles?"

"She should have on those irons!"

"She's trying to escape!"

"Stop her!"

Rocks came from all directions. Regina waved a hand, pausing the stones in mid air. The rocks fell and people rushed her. Regina flexed her hands, ready to decimate all of these fools, but she hesitated. _No, you can't do that. You don't want to be the villain_. That was true. _No, don't be stupid. Handling them would be self defense. Take one out and the others will remember not to test you_.

That sounded like a good idea and she formed a fireball, letting it fly. Her target screamed on impact and Regina smirked. The rest of the mob paused.

"That's right, peons! I'm still standing!" And then she felt a blunt shot to the back of her head. A loud crack sounded off and Regina dropped. Before she hit the ground, other hits impacted her body. When she crashed into the pavement, feet joined the assault. All Regina could focus on was pain. She tasted blood. Blood flowed from her eyebrow into her eye. Bones were broken and the world faded.

-8-8-8-8-

Next time: Regina's outlook changes.

A/N: go check out my book, _Taming the Wind_, on Amazon under the name SL Kassidy.


	5. Pulling Teeth

I don't own these characters; Disney/ABC does.

5: Pulling Teeth

The sheriff's cruiser screeched loud enough to drown out the sirens as Emma pulled up to what was called in as a mob attack. Most of the people looked at her as the dust settled from her stop, dirt and trash flying around. Tire marks probably marred the street now, not that it mattered. There was a group of maybe thirty people and Emma was by herself. _I really need to hire a deputy_. She grabbed the talk-piece for the radio and stepped out of the car.

"All right, break it up! Go about your day. I repeat go about your day," Emma said. Hopefully, they would listen. She was not sure what she would do if they did not. _I might need to get Regina to give me some magic lessons to deal with police work, too_. She would have to do something or she could end up hurt out here on her own.

"Sheriff, arrest her!" A man almost tripped over himself to get to Emma. He dripped with sweat, dark hair stuck to his forehead.

"Arrest who?" Emma could not figure why she should arrest one person in a brawl, but no one else. What the hell was this thing even about?

"The Evil Queen! She killed them!"

Emma gasped. "Regina!" Her heart jumped into her throat and her stomach balled up into one knot. _Wait, he said she killed people_. If that was the case, it was Emma's fault. She was the one who took those damn magic-stopping chains off of Regina. She moved closer to the men. "Who'd she kill? Where is she?" Her heart worked overtime, making it hard to breathe.

The man only pointed back to the crowd. Emma did not see any bodies or Regina at first. As the crowd shifted, there was a prone form that looked like a black speed bump, except hair blew in the wind. Emma was certain her heart went off like a grenade and blew apart her entire chest. _Regina!_

"Shit!" Emma felt like she flew to Regina, finding her lying in a pool of blood. Her face was completely red, like someone dumped maroon dye on her. Even her hair was matted with blood. It was bad. Emma looked around for other bodies, but saw none. "Where's the other bodies? Who's dead?" Regina had to have killed people to be in this state. There was no way these people destroyed Regina for nothing, right?!

People pointed in every direction, but there were no bodies, not even other injuries. Emma was not sure what happened, but trotted back to her car and radioed for an EMT. She was not sure if there were still EMTs, considering there did not seem to be sanitation workers and she had not gotten mail since moving, but she hoped. Regina was beyond in a bad way. A couple of ambulances zoomed up in under two minutes.

"Where are the bodies?" one asked Emma.

Emma was not sure how this might go, but it was good to see some people still working. "I got one in the street. Witnesses claimed more, but I haven't been able to locate them."

"Might be time to invest in some deputies, Sheriff. Don't want this to become the fictional Wild West."

Emma arched an eyebrow. "Fictional?" Was this some stupid storybook thing she did not get? She did not have time to think about dumb things.

"Yeah, all that shit on TV with gun fights and crap ain't true. The lawlessness ain't true."

Emma had nothing to add to that, not planning to let the town be lawless, and the EMTs went to work. Emma wanted to be with Regina, but she needed to do her job, find out what happened and hopefully find the missing bodies. _Maybe Regina flung 'em somewhere or something_. One set of paramedics refused to touch Regina, standing away from her with their hands up. The other pair dived in before Emma moved to scream at the first set.

"Don't help the Queen! Help the ones she hurt!"

"Why are you helping the Queen?"

"She went back on her word!"

Emma stood in front of the second pair of paramedics for a long moment. She did not want the mob to hurt them because they decided to do the right thing and do their jobs. _At least someone else around here still want to work_.

The first pair of paramedics had people come to them from all directions suddenly seeking medical attention. It was through the course of questioning those people, Emma discovered Regina hit two of them with fireballs and scorched their clothes. They were not dead, though. They were barely singed. Their clothes were not even messed up.

"Sheriff, Regina needs immediate medical attention. If you need her statement, she'll be at the hospital," the paramedics said as they packed Regina away.

Emma did not get a chance to respond. The ambulance peeled off, actually burning rubber. The resulting smell made Emma gag. What if Regina died? Everything was for nothing. Her insides dissolved at the thought. _What the hell am I gonna tell Henry?_

"Sheriff!" That brought Emma back to attention and she was able to go through the motions of her job.

It felt like it took forever to get statements and from those Emma still had no idea what happened. It sounded like Regina had mowed everyone down, raining fire from above to smite people, but she was the only one seriously hurt. She had not hurt a single person. It did not make sense.

A bunch of people mentioned Regina was not wearing her irons as justification for getting some hits in. Way too many of them said "she wasn't wearing her chains. She's not allowed to do that. We can't let her get away with that," or something along those lines.

"So… did she do anything before you noticed she was not wearing her chains?" Emma asked way too many times.

"She's supposed to wear them."

"She can't be free if she doesn't have them on. She's dangerous."

"She's a threat. She should've been burned at the stake."

"She got off way too easy, even if she's your slave."

Emma had to hold in a flinch each time it was mentioned Regina belonged to her. She was barely done and getting called to Storybrooke General over a disturbance. By the time she got there, the matter was resolved. There was a question about if they were going to admit Regina or not, with full out screaming from doctors, nurses, and patients. They admitted Regina. _They better had_. She was in emergency surgery.

Emma felt like she was about to throw up. _Please live, please live, please live_. It hurt to breathe.

"Although I'm surprised a doctor operated on her," a nurse said under his breath.

"Are you really? Half the damn doctors here are villains. The damn hospital director is a bad guy," another nurse replied.

"Really? Bad guy? I'd hardly describe her as a bad guy."

"She didn't pick a side in the war. Neutral in the face of evil is allied with evil."

"Who are we to decide what's evil at this point?"

"You sided with the fucking Queen or something?"

"No, but I saw friends tortured for information about the Queen. Let's not act like one side was all birds and sunshine while the other was murder and darkness. We both know that's a fucking lie."

"It was a war."

Emma stopped listening at that point. Well, that explained how Regina got admitted. Hopefully, a doctor who did not hold a grudge against her was operating. Emma doubted some of these folks were below letting a patient, Regina, die on the table. Someone truly diabolical might even make it seem like they tried, but in reality ensured Regina would die. _Fuck_.

"Where's Regina now?" Emma asked whoever would answer. She could not, would not trust Regina to these people.

"An operating room. You can wait for her on the fourth floor. From what I understood, She'll be in ICU if they save her, if you were planning to arrest her."

"Thanks." Emma was not planning to arrest Regina, but no one needed to know that. She found the waiting area for Regina because the entire Royal Council was there. There were so many of them, they took up all of the space in the area. _Well, that's not good_. Before she made it to them, her mother was in her face with her father glaring down at her from Mary Margaret's side.

"Oh, thank the gods you're okay!" Mary Margaret threw her arms around Emma.

"Uh… why wouldn't I be okay?" Emma asked, patting Mary Margaret on the shoulder. She tried to pull away. The hug did not make her feel good. In fact, it made her stomach twist and she was not sure how she held back vomit. It was like something had died and was rotting inside of her chest.

"We thought Regina killed you and that's how she freed herself from her bonds!" David snatched her into a hug and squeezed too hard. She did not think on why that might have been. It was probably a mistake. "We were worried sick."

Emma did not entirely believe that, especially with David's face, but now was not the time. _When will be the time? Never?_ "Regina didn't escape. She was supposed to be out food shopping." At least that was her claim in the morning before Emma and Henry left.

_What the hell did Regina really do while she was out? _Emma could not believe Regina was almost killed over nothing, but she also did not want to believe Regina tried to kill anyone else. _None of this makes any sense, anyway_. If Regina tried to kill people, then people would have been dead. The only person even close to dead was Regina. _This couldn't have been Regina's fault_.

The Blue Fairy marched over, a hard glare in her eyes and a curl to her lip. "Instead she's running wild, causing chaos in the streets. Where were her shackles?" It was a demand, maybe even an accusation.

Emma shrugged. "I took them off." She stood by the decision. There was no way in hell Regina was to blame here.

"You what?" everyone screamed as if she lost her mind and suddenly there was a crowd around her.

Emma was not intimidated by them, not even her parents. "Yeah, I took them off. They gave me and Henry the creeps."

"You can't just take her irons off, Emma. Part of the reason she wasn't outright executed was because she agreed to wear the irons. The irons keep everybody safe from her," Kathryn said.

"Yet Regina is the one in the hospital," Emma replied. Why did they not understand that they had done the wrong thing here? They could not take away someone's freewill, someone's agency, and expect everything to be all right. They could not look the other way with some behavior and double-down on others. That was not fair and while she knew the system was not fair, it was supposed to be. Leaders were supposed to be fair.

"She's lucky the townspeople didn't kill her when they saw her without the irons. Her not having magic was the only reason they were fine with us not chopping her head off. Now, she's gone back on the deal day one." Kathryn threw her hands up.

"We can't trust her and we can't trust you with her," Matilda Blois said, giving Emma her now usual glare. Emma had known this woman all of two days and she had a clear dislike for the Savior. It was probably because Emma did not hate Regina with the same obvious passion Matilda did.

"She's the one in the hospital," Emma replied. "She was just going food shopping and she ended up in the hospital."

Wesley walked over, squaring his shoulders. The few times Emma found herself interacting with him, he seemed to think his size scared her. She did not care how big he was. If it was necessary, she would put him on his ass. "That's what she told you, but obviously she was out terrorizing the populace."

Emma arched an eyebrow. "Oh, you mean like Mister Goodwin?"

A murderous frown cut into Wesley's face. "He is a noble and will be treated with the respect he deserves."

"Even as he destroys the school and makes life hell for the kids there?" Emma put her chin in the air. Let him explain that mess away.

"The school has been structured incorrectly and we will correct that soon enough to make it safe for the staff and students alike," he had the nerve to say.

Matilda waved the matter off. "This isn't about the schools. This is about the greatest menace our world has known."

"Gold?" Emma said because he was still free and clear. How was that fair? How was any of this fair?

"We'll get to Gold, but he's helped us for now," her mother said.

Emma could not help palming her face. This was all giving her a headache she did not need, not while her stomach was in complete turmoil and her nerves were shot. Regina could be dead for all they knew and they were still scared of her.

"It's time to do what needs to be done," the Blue fairy said. It was impossible to think of her as a nun anymore, not with the way she kept advocating for Regina's execution the past few days.

"No!" Emma made a fist. "You're not killing Regina. Do you know what the fuck that'll do to Henry? He spends his time and energy trying to rescue you, break your curse, and you kill his fucking mother? He'll think it's his fault!" Emma glared at the group. Did they not understand that? And if she let it happen, it would be her fault. She would have failed her son. Regina killed a damn god for Henry and she could not even protect his mother for him. Some savior.

"He knows she's a villain," the Blue fairy said.

"He knows she's his mom. He knows she saved his life and risked her life to save all of you," Emma replied.

"We wouldn't be here if it wasn't for her," Maurice said.

"Funny because I'm pretty sure you wouldn't be here if it wasn't for Gold. Or, maybe even Blue." Emma cut her eyes to the fairy.

"Me?" The Blue fairy had the nerve to look shocked.

"Neal told me all about you in Neverland, sending him down a hole, claiming it was the only way to save his father. You convinced him to go and you separated them. Gold came here looking for him. Gold's the one who gave Regina the Curse," Emma said. Maybe one day when she cared to speak to Neal, she would find out more, but she knew enough.

"This isn't about me. It's about the Evil Queen," the Blue fairy replied.

"Emma, don't let Regina sweet talk you. It's happened to me and it never ends well," Mary Margaret said.

David put his hands on Mary Margaret's shoulders. "She'll play on your sympathies and betray you the first chance she gets." The way his eyes seemed to glaze over with pity, it was clear he thought that was what happened. He thought Regina played her.

"It was a bad idea to give her to you in the first place," Kathryn said.

Emma frowned. "Yeah, it's a bad idea to give humans other humans as possessions in general. Glad we're all on the same page there."

"You haven't suffered at her hands like the rest of us. Of course she could make you think she's harmless," Kathryn said and a volcano erupted inside Emma.

Emma held up a rigid finger. "I haven't suffered? You've got some fucking nerve! Thanks to this bullshit I was found on the side of the road in Maine, in a crisp autumn night. I almost died from exposure as a fucking newborn! And that's one of the highlights of my fucking life! Have you slept in the street? Have you gone hungry? Have you ever had rats trying to eat you? You ever got cigarettes put out on your skin? Told you were worthless? Forced into a locked closet as punishment for days on end? Been beat with a belt buckle? I've been through all that more, so don't fucking tell me about suffering."

She was all too familiar with suffering, probably much more than the people standing before her. Hell, Regina probably knew suffering greater than they did from what she told Emma in Neverland. No, she was not going to discount the mind control and kidnapping, but they did not have a monopoly on suffering as they liked to pretend, just like Regina did not have a monoply on evil.

David stepped to Emma as Kathryn fell back. "All right, Emma, calm down." He reached for her arm, but she shrugged him away.

Emma continued to glower at them all. "Instead of focusing so much energy on Regina maybe you guys should try to run the town. The junior high is a mess. I've stopped more duals in the past two days than I ever thought necessary and I'm literally the only working law enforcement agent. Most of those have to do with people trying to take over someone else's property. I'm about to have to start living in my cruiser at this rate. If the plan is to let the town fall apart, please let me know, so I can get the fuck out of Dodge."

That seemed to be the kick in the ass the Council needed to get out of her face. In less than a minute, it was just Emma and her two great abandoners. David was so good at dropping Emma like a hot rock, he even did it for an admittedly important job. She was not worth him showing up to work and at least having her back. _Fuck parents. I'll be better to Henry than they are to me_.

David and Mary Margaret would not even back her when she fought with the Council, beyond just now. It took about two days with the Council for Emma to understand Mary Margaret was gone, replaced by this mythological Snow White character. She was unimpressed. Snow White was one of the Royals and the Royals were watching Storybrooke, her home, crumble.

"Emma, seriously, don't let Regina sweet talk you. Put the irons back on," Snow said.

"I can handle Regina." She might be the only person Emma could handle now.

"Put her irons back on. She'll use any trick to win," Snow said.

"Like you did with her mother?" Emma was done with all of this holier than thou BS from everyone. They were willing to support nobles based on status and try to reshape the world as they wanted it, just like Regina. And, if there was a true war, like they made it seem, then they killed people, just as Regina had. According to the nurse, they tortured people, just as Regina had. And, they seemed willing to make as many excuses for Regina as to why they were justified in what they did.

"That was to save everyone," Snow replied.

"And your mother felt bad about it, unlike Regina," David said.

"No one knows how Regina feels, except maybe you." Emma looked at Snow, who had felt what Regina felt through magic and begged for it to end. They probably had no idea how it was to feel that way all the time. She knew life for them was not a walk in the park, but she was still done with them acting like their shit did not stink.

Snow grimaced. "Don't let her trick you, Emma. Put her shackles back on. She agreed to that. We all agreed to that."

Emma folded her arms across her chest. "That's why you needed Gold and I bet he doesn't have his own irons." It was a fact. Gold was still sitting pretty in his stupid shop.

"We'll worry about Gold. You focus on Regina," Snow said.

"And I'll see about getting you a replacement deputy. Hook might be interested," David said.

"He can be interested all he wants. He will not get the job," Emma replied. She did not need him around distracting her, trying to get into her pants as she tried to maintain something that looked like order in the town.

David's face wrinkled, like he was actually baffled. "Why not? He likes you. He'll protect you."

Emma scoffed. "First off, I'm not some damsel in distress. I don't need him to protect me. I protect me and I do a damn good job at it. Second off, and maybe more important, he's currently a real life criminal. He's a pirate. He helped Cora. He kidnapped Doctor Hopper. He tried to murder Gold. He almost murdered Belle."

"Sounds like Regina's resume," David said.

Emma scowled. "He's currently stalking me and I don't trust him." She did not have the history with Hook like she did with Regina.

"Neal would be a better fit, don't you think?" Snow said, a weird twinkle in her eye.

"To drop dead, yeah. In fact, if we're taking votes…" Emma raised her hand. "I would not be upset to find out he died, like I said in Neverland. Fuck Neal. Now, I've got work to do." She needed to get an update on Regina and to let doctors know to contact her if something changed. And also make it clear that if something happened to Regina, there would be hell to pay.

Other than that, Storybrooke would not police itself. Emma had never felt so held together by spit, string, and grit before in her life. She was not sure how long she would be able to keep this up.

-8-8-8-8-

Regina was conscious enough to realize there was a muted pain underneath a faded euphoria. She was aware of it, but it did not hurt in the manner she expected. Painkillers, probably. _But, why do I need painkillers?_ Probably for the same reason she could not open her eyes at the moment. Her eyelids were so heavy, like they were weighted down, and like there was sand underneath them. Why?

"I can't believe you let them put those back on her." A voice. It sounded like Henry, but like he was under water or she was under water.

"It was that or let them publicly execute her. We can take them off again when we go home," Emma replied, voice just as muffled.

While she could barely make out the voices, she knew immediately what they were talking about. She could feel her bonds eating at her flesh, gnawing just underneath her skin. Why were they back on? Her mind flashed, an image of her with fire dancing on her fingertips, screams echoing in the cold Storybrooke air. _I killed someone_. She felt certain of that.

_I've barely had the chains off for twenty-four hours and I've already gone back to being a villain. I can't help myself. I can't be stopped. I don't want this, though. I just want my son. I just want Emma. Why can't I just leave well enough alone? _Tears burned her closed eyes. She could not be trusted. She needed to be in chains, controlled, like an animal.

"No," Regina said, her voice barely a whisper. It scratched its way out of her throat, like it had been buried under shattered expectations.

"Mom! "Henry sounded closer now.

Regina forced her eyes opened, wanting to see him. He was nothing more than a light blur and a tearing pain in her head. A wince escaped her as her brain tried to remain in one piece. Painkillers could not help her fractured mind.

"Regina, don't try to move. You're really hurt," Emma said. A taller blur appeared next to the Henry blur.

"It feels that way," Regina replied. The dull ache throbbed through her bones. She could feel the muted pain even in her eyebrows. She could hardly imagine what this would be like without painkillers. How was she not dead?

"You broke a lot of bones and you can't heal yourself because they put the irons back on you," Henry said.

"Emma?" Regina's head fell in the direction of the taller blob. Colors were separating, so she could tell it was definitely Emma. "If you would…"

"You're trusting me to heal you?" Emma made it sound like a stupid idea.

"We moved the moon together. Healing me shouldn't be a problem if you really want to," Regina replied. She needed something to take the pain away, to help her think, to understand what happened.

"We could just take the chains off," Emma said. "Nobody's around. They won't know."

Regina shook her head, or so she hoped. "I can't focus enough to do it myself. I don't even know what happened." Beyond the fact that she could not be trusted without the damned shackles on.

"Yeah, I don't want to make things worse. I mean, the doctor had a long list of things that happened to you. I don't want to make things worse," Emma said.

Regina could understand that. "You won't hurt me if you focus."

"I think it's too risky to try. I shouldn't be practicing magic when you almost died."

"Died?" Regina tried to recall what happened. Why had she almost died? "I was attacked?" She could hear echoes of angry screams in her mind. And then fire flashed before her eyes once more. She could feel the heat lick at her palm and she flinched, nerves burned by her own talent. "No, I attacked." It barely took her two days to go back on her word.

Emma shook her head. "I saw your work. It was barely a D. No way you attacked first."

Regina squinted, and even that hurt. Hell, trying to remember hurt. "No, I went back on the deal the first chance I had. I deserve these." She tried to lift her hands, but it was too hard.

"No one deserves slavery," Emma replied.

Regina was not so sure about that. Obviously, she did not know how to behave in society anymore. She could not trust herself or her instincts. "I actually thought you and Henry would approve of my attack." Clearly her perception was warped.

"Regina, it's okay," Emma said.

"No, it's not." A tear slid down her cheek. She did not want to be a villain, did not want to alienate Henry or Emma, but she did not know how to do that. "I can't turn it off. I can't stop being this… thing. So, we'll leave the irons on."

"Mom, you just have to try harder," Henry said.

Regina wished it was that easy, but she already proved she did not have it in her. How did things get this way? She used to be a good person. She used to know right from wrong. _And even then you made some of the worst decisions. You could never be trusted_. _You should've been chained and shackled a long time ago. You need to be controlled, tamed, chained_.

"Henry, it's better like this for right now, until I learn how to be better," Regina said. _If I can learn_.

"But, it's not better. Slavery's never better," Emma replied.

Regina wanted to give Emma a sad smile, but she could hardly move her face. "It is and you should probably come up with a punishment for me when I act up." They needed something in place for her to understand she did the wrong thing. "It'll help me learn and get me to understand how to behave."

Emma's face pulled back in horror. "I'm not punishing you."

"You have to or I'll never learn." _I want to be better. I don't want to be a villain_.

"Mom, you're talking crazy. Maybe it's the painkillers," Henry said.

"Yeah, you're on a lot of painkillers," Emma said.

"No, it's a desire to get better." Regina wanted to live to see her son grow up and it would not happen if she could not get herself under control. If some average, angry citizen of Storybrooke did not murder her, eventually, she would do something to earn her execution. Steps needed to be in place to prevent that. "Please…" she whimpered.

"Mom," Henry said.

Regina swallowed around a lump in her throat and felt like a rock settled in her stomach. "Please, I don't… I just… I just want to be better. I don't want this anymore." It was a shame she could not do this on her own, but she knew Emma would help her. Emma would make sure she lived long enough to see their son become a man.

"There are other things you can do, Mom," Henry replied.

"Emma, what will be my punishment?" Regina asked.

Emma blew out a breath and twisted her mouth up. "This is stupid."

"I'm sure my next owner won't think so," Regina replied. She would belong to someone else in less than a week if Emma did not do something. She would suffer serious humiliation and pain before her new master eventually ended her because everyone wanted her dead, even if they wanted her to afflicted before she died.

Emma groaned and rubbed her forehead. "Fine. Whenever you do something wrong, go sit in the nearest corner. You'll be on timeout."

"Emma!" Henry's voice was a shriek and threw his hands out.

Emma waved it off. "Don't worry, Henry. She probably won't even remember this conversation. She's pumped full of painkillers, to the point this'll turn into some weird dream for her. She's probably struggling to stay awake right now."

That last part was very true, but Regina would make sure she remembered this conversation. It was in her heart, as it would be the thing that allowed her to see her son graduate high school. This conversation would help her become someone worthy of being Henry's mother. So, even as the world narrowed and faded to black, she would follow all of Emma's commands and rules. If not, she would go sit in the corner.

-8-8-8-8-

Next time: Regina settles into her role as servant while David shows Emma he's not listening.


	6. Hurt People

I don't own these characters; Disney/ABC does.

6: Hurt People

Emma was not happy. Okay, she was unhappy most of her life, but now she had a different reason. Regina refused to take it easy, even though she had only just been discharged from the hospital. Emma was not sure how, but a day after surgery and being in the ICU, Regina was released. That in and of itself did not make any sense. How did someone go from near death to fine to go home?

At first, Emma thought it was a trick, but Regina walked out under her own power. Yes, her steps were slow, but sure. Hopefully, one of the doctors was a witch, who sneaked Regina a healing potion and not the doctors deciding, "fuck the Evil Queen" and being okay with letting Regina die at home. Not that Regina looked on the brink of death. Actually, she looked on the brink of making breakfast, a mixing bowl in her hand as she moved around the kitchen. She was very obviously better than she was yesterday.

"Regina, can you at least sit your ass down?" Emma threw her hands up. She had been trying to talk Regina into slowing down since she came in. Of course, Regina did not listen. When did Regina ever listen? _Not like anybody listens to me anymore, so why should Regina be any different?_

"Really, Mom." Henry came up behind Emma. He patted Emma on the shoulder, as if needing to show his support.

"Breakfast won't make itself," Regina replied, practically gliding now. It seemed like practiced grace, which Emma was not used to with Regina. It was not that Regina was clumsy, of course. But, Regina's movement had always seemed sharp, precise. Right now, it seemed light, at a time when Regina should be weighed down with everything, especially her shackles.

"Tell that to the toaster. Look, we're good with cereal. You almost died yesterday," Emma said.

"But, I didn't and I have things to tend to." Regina moved about the kitchen like the noblewoman she was, showing no signs of yesterday's trauma as she gathered what she needed.

It was like she was on a mission. To be normal? To be okay with everything? To be… a good servant? _Please not that_. Emma could not take her eyes off of Regina, trying to figure her out, trying to get her to stop.

"You don't have to do them now, Mom. How are you even standing right? Your doctor said your spleen got ruptured. I'm not sure what a spleen does, but it probably shouldn't be ruptured,'' Henry said. That was just one of the many injuries Regina had yesterday and spent several hours in surgery for. She needed to sit her ass down.

Regina waved him off as she flipped an omelet. "I still have some magical allies who don't want to see me dead."

"Yeah, but do they want to see you back in the hospital from overdoing things?" Emma asked.

"I am fine. The reason I was dismissed from the hospital is because it's also full of enemies who would like to see me dead. A friend did not want to give those people a chance to get to me and I don't want that either. I am not in a rush to go back into danger," she replied.

"Exactly! So, you should take it easy!"

Regina shook her head. "I don't need to take it easy. I'm fine. Now, I'm making breakfast. No more arguing." She waved the spatula at them, maybe as a threat. "Thank you for picking me up from the hospital, but you two should be relaxing on your Saturday," she told them. Her eyes never made it to Emma or Henry. It was weird, but she was probably traumatized from the attack. She needed time to process as much as Emma and Henry did.

"You shouldn't be doing anything at all after five hours of surgery only yesterday," Emma said.

"Again, I'm fine."

Emma wanted to rip her hair out. "How? What could your 'magical ally' have possibly done to heal everything wrong with you if you had on your irons?" Emma's eyes drifted to the chains and her stomach lurched at the sight. This would never be all right. Regina should not have to wear shackles to be safe, to feel safe. _And she shouldn't be your slave, right? Don't forget that_.

"A healing potion isn't affected by the irons. It's not me using my magic. It's an outside force affecting me, much like the bonds themselves. And these irons have been specifically designed with my magic in mind, so it's easy for anyone else to bypass," Regina replied.

"You mean dark magic?" Henry asked.

Regina frowned and her eyes scanned the floor. Was she trying to think of a lie or word her response in a way for Henry to feel comfortable? Did she not understand Henry would never be comfortable with this?

"Cooking will help me feel better, help me feel normal…" Regina's voice was small, but it cut into Emma.

Emma sighed. "Isn't there something else that'll do that? Like sitting on the couch and reading your favorite book?"

Regina's eyes remained on the floor and she trembled. Emma did not know what to make of that, except to take it as Regina was traumatized. _And who wouldn't be after being beaten almost to death and then being abandoned by over half the medical staff in a hospital? So, maybe get off her back._ They should let Regina work through her trauma in her own way, even if it meant cooking when she should be chilling out. Emma put her hand on Henry's shoulder and he looked up at her.

"We should probably sort through the 'stuff' the Royal Council claims is ours," Emma said. They had been in the house a few days and Regina was the only to touch "the stuff" and it was not even hers. They should make sure everything belonged to them and there were no more surprise spoils of war. Emma's stomach twisted at the very idea. _How I haven't vomited yet from this whole mess, I have no idea_.

Henry's eyebrows curled up like a little puppy. "You sure?"

Emma looked at Regina, who somehow looked small for the first time ever. Height wise Emma was always aware Regina was tiny. It was funny. Regina was tiny, but came across like a giant, like a volcano. Now, she looked even smaller than she was, like she might shatter in on herself in a breeze. They needed to let her regroup.

"Yeah, come on." Emma pulled him away. Once they were far enough away where she did not think Regina could hear her, she explained in a whisper. "Your mom just needs time to pull herself together."

Henry glanced back. "You think she'll do it by breakfast?"

"Of course not, but she can start."

Henry nodded and that was that. They made their way upstairs to the room that could have been Regina's but instead was an office. Why would they need an office? Henry could work in his room and Emma was not bringing any paperwork home. Without Regina breathing down her neck, she might never do paperwork again. She would play it by ear with the Royal Council… if they ever let her arrest anyone again. Well, and if the charges would stick since there were no full time judges anymore. Actually, not a lot of people worked in the courthouse point blank nowadays.

_What the hell happened with all of the judges anyway? And the court officers and, hell, even the couple of public defenders we had? _ It was something she would need to look into. She shook that thought away. Now was not the time to wonder about the madness outside. She needed to focus on the madness inside, inside the house anyway.

Before Emma could begin, her phone went off. She groaned. "Who could be having an emergency at eight in the morning?" She pulled out her phone.

"They can't leave you as the only police officer, right? You can't police the whole town," Henry said.

Emma was not sure about that and it was not like she could walk off the job in protest. People believed in her to keep them safe. Yes, it might be more as the savior than as sheriff, but she could not leave them, not right now anyway.

"Sheriff Swan," Emma answered her cell.

"Emma, you need to get down to the station," David said.

"And hello to you, too.'' Her throat burned. It caused her physical pain to talk to him now? Maybe it was because he was her father, but did not seem to get it, did not seem to get _her_. Hell, did not seem to _want_ her.

"Oh, hi." Of course the greeting was said absently, like it did not matter, much like Emma. "I have a replacement down here for you to meet. My replacement, not yours obviously. You're doing a good job." It was like he was talking to a dog.

Emma groaned, happy to know her metaphorical tail did not wag. Her desire to please her parents seemed to be waning, leaving annoyance and disappointment in its wake. "Right now? This is my day off and I'm about to get a homemade breakfast.'' That meant a lot to someone who usually had cold cereal or donuts for breakfast, if she ate at all.

"Heroes don't get days off," he sounded proud, sure of himself.

"I'm no hero." And she did not want to be. _I just want to do the right thing and help people if I can_. She did not think that made her a hero. It made her not an asshole.

"Tell that to the Curse you broke." And he sounded proud and she withered inside. Was that how her worth was determined?

Emma frowned. "I'll be there after breakfast." Because fuck him. _Fuck him, but you're still going, right?_ Her stomach twisted. She might not even be able to hold down breakfast. _Look, I just want a fucking father, okay?_ It was not like it was a crime to want parents. _Even if they make you feel this way?_

"Everything okay?'' Henry asked.

Emma tried to take a breath, but her chest was so tight. She did not want to drag Henry into any of their nonsense. She did not want him to feel this way. _Then you better protect his mother, idiot_.

"It's okay, Henry. It was just about getting more help at the station,'' she replied.

"Are you lying to me?"

Emma blinked and pulled back at the question. "No. Why would you even say that?" _Because you lie to him. Because you're a liar. Because you pretend to be a good person, but you let his mom get hurt and enslaved by your own stupid parents_.

"Because you look like you're about to be sick. I mean, you're practically green. Like if vomit was a person, it would be you."

Emma winced. That was how she felt. It was like she had been chewed up and spat out. "That's just adulthood." _I might have actually felt better in Neverland_. Yeah, her head had been foggy, but she felt beyond off balance here.

Henry smiled. "Too bad we couldn't be Lost Boys in Neverland, huh?"

"Probably would've been fun, you know, if Peter Pan wasn't an asshole."

Henry nodded. "True."

Emma scratched her chin. "Although, I didn't like him in the movie either. He came across as an asshole there." She had never been a fan.

Henry's mouth dropped open. "What? No way!"

Emma snorted. "Yes way. He's a straight douche. He laughed when the mermaids almost killed Wendy, like it was a joke. He's constantly trying to feed Hook to a crocodile and, yeah, Hook's a jerk, but attempted murder is still attempted murder. The only reason he took Wendy to Neverland was to be a mother to some boys he kidnapped. He's kinda a sociopath."

Henry put a finger to his chin. "Okay, so some of the things he does are kinda the actions of a jerk."

"Oh, there are plenty more examples." A debate on Peter Pan the Disney movie distracted them until Regina called them for breakfast. They never really made it in going through the stuff.

"Okay, he might actually be a villain." Henry shrugged as they headed downstairs.

Emma chuckled and then the sweet smell of cinnamon hit her. She hummed and drool gathered in her mouth before she even saw the food. Her mouth knew what it was doing. The bounty set up on the table was a sight to behold. French toast stacked to the ceiling, a platter of scrambled eggs, a pile of bacon, a tower of sausage patties, fruit salad, biscuits, and home fries. It was possible she died and went to food heaven. _I never wanna leave_.

"Wow, Mom, you went all out,'' Henry said as he slid in front of loaded plate, like he knew it was for him.

"It's the best I could do since I never made it to the store," Regina replied.

"You mean we could have had even more than this? Damn those guys for bothering you yesterday!" Emma laughed as she threw her fists in the air.

The joke proved to be too soon as a thick silence blanketed the room. _Hope you can eat with that foot stuck in your mouth_. She sat down at an empty plate, planning to dump everything on it. Regina moved, putting french toast on the plate before Emma could figure out what happened. For a moment, she watched, a weird flutter in her chest. She blinked it away.

"Regina, you don't need to serve me. I've got this," Emma said.

"I would've made your plate, but I'm not sure of your portion sizes yet," Regina replied.

"You don't need to do that. I got it.'' Emma quickly grabbed up some bread to make a show of fixing her own plate. Regina stepped away. It was not until Emma had all the food she could eat that she noticed Regina standing off to the side. "Aren't you going to eat?"

Regina shook her head. "Not right now."

"Mom, you gotta eat," Henry said.

"Yeah, especially since you made all of this." Emma motioned to the table with a twirl of her finger.

Regina waved them off, but did not move her hand very much, as if fearful of calling attention to her chains. "I'm not hungry right now. I'll go take care of the dishes if that's all right."

"You need any help? The kid is obligated to be free labor because he's your kid," Emma said.

"Hey!'' Henry managed to say around a cheek full of home fries.

"No, that's fine." Regina seemed to scurry away retreating to the kitchen.

"That was weird, right?" Henry asked.

"Very." Emma hoped the trauma was not too much for Regina. "Watch her when I'm out at the station and call me if anything gets sideways."

Henry nodded, but that did not make her feel too much better. He should not have to see his mother like this. He should not need to "watch" her either. He was only eleven, for crying out loud. This was too much.

-8-8-8-8-

Regina sighed as Emma left for the station, looking as if she had the weight of Atlas on her shoulders. Henry shared a similar look. Maybe it was selfish of her to have them share space with, but they were all she wanted after almost losing them. _"Them"? You almost lost Henry and Henry is everything. Emma is only an addition to Henry_. The lies she told herself.

"Mom, you should probably get some rest," Henry said.

"I'm fine." It was not a lie. She was physically fine. "I have a few things to do and then I'll settle in. How about you continue to settle into your room," she replied. She had unpacked most of it the first day and made it look like his old room back at the mansion, but maybe he did not want it that way. She had assumed he liked his old room, but she had assumed many things in life, many things about Henry, and had been very wrong. _That's why things are better this way. Everyone is safer this way_.

"I could help you with whatever you need to do."

She smiled. "Sweet boy, thank you, but I have it under control. Go enjoy your room."

Henry's jaw twitched as he watched her with slightly narrowed eyes and a wrinkled brow. He suspected her, suspected she was lying, as he often did. That was why this was better. She would lie to him and make excuses for her behavior, her poor behavior. She did not know how to behave and that was evident yesterday. She made poor decisions, went back on her word instantly, and made fools of Emma and Henry. Well, no more.

"It's okay, Henry. I'm okay," Regina replied, keeping her smile, small and light. She did not want to pour it on, but he needed to know this was the best way and she was all right with it.

He pursed his lips and his forehead wrinkled even more. "Who gave you the potion? Can you trust them?"

"I'd trust her with my life." Well, really, she already had. She hoped Morgan was safe. Someone at the hospital probably knew Morgan was the one who saved her, but she doubted anyone would confront Morgan about it. But, there was the worry that several other doctors and nurses who should have helped Regina had already been forced out of their positions. Even more worrying was that they had not been replaced.

"Who is it?" Henry asked.

Regina sighed. She did not want to get into it, did not want to chance Henry telling his grandparents, and them setting the world on fire, which they had already done. The town was a mess and the Royal Council had no idea how to fix. They did not seem to want to fix it. For all David's "we are both" speeches, the Council clearly believed their Cursed selves were a lie.

The town would not survive such thinking. _No, it's not your concern. after all, how many times did your decisions almost destroy everyone? You have no right to criticize. Stay in your place_.

"Henry, I don't want to get her in trouble," Regina said.

His mouth dropped open. "You think I'll tell? Come on, Mom!"

"Henry, please. It could cause a lot of trouble." The Council was already shaking up things by removing themselves and others from their jobs. It was why the courthouse was empty and other town government jobs were vacant. She did not want them to turn their attention to the hospital and make a full sweep of the place.

Henry sighed and then glared at her, like she was a bad guy. "Fine, keep your secret." He stomped off upstairs.

Regina felt a sharp pain in her chest, like a million hot needles in her heart as she recalled an eight, nine, and ten year old Henry reacting the same way to her words. Things had not changed, but they could. She could change. She just needed to stop trying to control anything. She fiddled with her right iron cuff.

"Don't think. Work." She moved to clean up breakfast and also begin a list of items the house needed. She would have to make it to the store today. With her shackles, maybe things would be more successful.

She made it through the dishes before the doorbell rang and pulled her from her chores. At the door, she was not surprised to find Snow White. The sight of her, smug and prime, made Regina's teeth itch. Maybe in some alternate universe somewhere a wiser Regina defeated this simpering cow. _To think, you had all of those chances to kill her, but you were too weak to even do that_.

"Yes?" Regina asked in the most civil tone she could muster and still sounded like her throat was crushed.

"I'm here to check up on you. We've decided to do daily checks to ensure what happened yesterday doesn't happen again or we'll bury you in your own dungeon," Snow replied.

Regina bit the inside of her cheek and gave Snow a tight smile. "I see. Well, why don't we start the check." She motioned for Snow White to step inside.

Snow watched her and waited. Regina frowned. _I can be civil, but I cannot abandon what little dignity I have left_.

"If you expect me to bow, you have a long wait," Regina said. _Well, that was rude for a common servant. And to your master's mother no less. You really don't learn_. No, there was only so much she could take. This woman put chains on her, made her a slave, and that was after destroying her life. Snow could not have any more of her.

"No, but the last time I showed you mercy, you stabbed me."

Not a lie. And another piece of evidence that Regina did not need to make her own decisions. Still, her blood boiled at Snow pointing out her weakness, pointing out yet another time things had not gone Regina's way. There was a sting, a burn, to that. Nothing went her way, no matter what. Henry's angry footsteps echoed in her bones, drumming through her. Why did she even exist at this point?

Regina held her hands up, bonds rattling. "As you can see I'm unarmed. Come in. Inspect the house." She still refused to bow.

Snow eyed her as she stepped inside. Snow hurried by while she closed the door. By the time Regina was at her side, Snow was in the living room, glancing around.

"It's immaculate," Regina said, voice clipped, as if she would allow her son to live in filth.

Snow turned to her. "This isn't about you keeping house. This is about you keeping your word and knowing your place or we'll put you some place else where you'll get exactly what you deserve. You're not going to trick Emma into doing anything else to put herself or anyone else in danger."

"Newsflash, I didn't trick Emma into anything. I love how it didn't even occur to you that this might make Emma even the slightest bit uncomfortable. You thought you were giving her a great gift. As if you two could bond over your hand-me-down stepmother-slash-human doll." It was too easy to read Snow. Too bad Snow did not realize how absolute almost crazy she was driving Emma.

Snow opened her mouth, but for a long few seconds she had nothing to say. Her mouth moved, but without sound, so she looked like a fish. It warmed Regina and it took her a few seconds herself to realize it was wrong. _You're such a fool. You shouldn't take pleasure in her idiocy, especially as it hurts Emma. Everything you think, do, and feel is wrong. You are wrong_. That was why she was here.

"Think what you will, Regina, and say what you want, but this is the way it is. Emma would understand why you're here and why she gets you in this capacity if she got a chance to grow up where she was supposed to," Snow said.

"And you'd want her to be okay with owning me?" Regina asked. She had many slaves during her run as Evil Queen. Hell, the genie was still her slave, but she was fine with Henry being disgusted by the idea. He was better than she was. It was good to know and she wanted him to always be better than she was. Snow probably could not fathom that Emma was better than she was.

"She does own you by her right. She needs to accept it. I know you think you have it good here and you think Emma will just cater to you, but we'll get her on board with the Old World's culture, just like we'll put the town in the right order. She'll put you in your place. Until then you get to see her be a real mother to Henry and she'll probably marry his father. You could serve the whole family." Snow gave her a wicked smile. The little bitch.

Regina winced at the mention of Henry's father. Even if Emma was not interested, Henry was. He would want to know the man and, if past behavior was anything to go by, he would get his way. His grandparents would probably help. Who knew what influence Rumple's useless offspring might have on Henry. No, she would not let Snow get away with that.

A smile curled onto Regina's face before she realized and she could taste the venom on the tip of her tongue. There was no way to stop it. "You say these things because you don't know Emma at all or you're ignoring what you do know. Emma back with Henry's father? Don't make me laugh. He hurt her so badly I can see it and you're acting like it isn't there because you want life to be the magical fairy tale it used to be to assuage your guilt. If Emma suddenly now has the perfect life it doesn't wipe away years of pain put there from growing up alone, from being a Lost Girl."

"It's your fault."

Regina tilted her head, making her expression that much more sinister. "Is it? Who put the newborn in a magic tree and sent her into the unknown?"

"You would've killed her!" Snow's chin trembled.

Probably. Regina tapped her chin. "Or would I have raised her as my own? She could've grown up and wanted for nothing, but you needed a savior and you sacrificed Emma for it. You know and she knows it. A fairy tale ending won't fix the hellish nightmare she's lived through."

Snow whimpered and the noise satisfied Regina better than any food or embrace. Not surprising, Snow rushed off after that and Regina smiled. Pride straightened her back until she took in what she had done. _You can't help yourself_.

She should not be happy or proud that she hurt Snow, especially not using Emma like that. This was villainy. She could not be trusted to be anything but a villain. She could only do wrong.

"This is why you have to stop making your own decisions. You do best when someone tells you what to do," Regina said to herself.

Her behavior would not do and she needed a reminder of that. What was supposed to happen if she did the wrong thing? Oh, right. She went and sat in the corner. How long she should she stay here? She would wait for Emma to come home and tell her.

-8-8-8-8-

Emma could not believe she had come down to the station on her day off for David to waste her time. He had the nerve to have Hook with him, under the impression Hook would make a suitable replacement as deputy. Emma could not begin to fathom why he thought that was a good idea.

"I'm not hiring Hook," Emma said, leaning against the desk closest to the cells.

"Why not?" David asked. Why the hell was this even a question?

"To start, he's a pirate. His whole persona is wrapped up in being a criminal," Emma replied. She should not have to state the obvious, but there it was.

"I've changed," Hook said. It would not have been believable in general, but his stupid smirk and bedroom eyes made it super obvious he was lying.

"He'll have your back," David said.

"Yeah, I'll bet." Emma could already picture him leering at her ass during any and all important moments.

Hook nodded and he pressed his hook to his chest. "That's right, love. I wouldn't let anything happen to you. I'd protect you."

"Yeah, thanks, but no thanks." Emma had no desire to hang around another sleazy man. Reminded her too much of her teenage years where bad choices were in abundance, peaking when she went to prison.

David frowned and crossed his arms over his chest. "Why not? You need a deputy and we know he'll protect you."

Emma took a deep breath, hoping it would keep her from screaming. It only gave her more power in her voice. "I don't need protecting! The job is to protect the town, not me. And I don't need someone around me who's only trying get into my pants working here. He's not going to have my back in any sense that helps me. If anything, I'll have to watch my own damn back around him."

"Love," Hook started, but she cut him off at the knees.

"No!" She crossed her arms in front of her, forming an "x" and glowering at him. "Stop calling me that. You don't even know me. You think we shared one kiss and that means something? I was overwhelmed by everything. You think I forgot you were actively trying to destroy us because you helped once?" Emma scoffed, throwing her head to the side.

"You would hold that against me, but we all know you defend the Evil Queen?" Hook frowned, like he was insulted.

He was right. Regina had done terrible, awful things and she still gave Regina a chance. She was not sure why that was. Maybe it was because Regina did not subject her to sexual harassment. Maybe because she felt like she knew Regina, the _real_ Regina. They had been through a lot in the past year and it felt like something. Something heavy, weighty, and of substance.

"Regina doesn't have anything to do with this," Emma said.

"She has everything to do with this. You'd give her a second chance, a proven monster, but not me?" Hook stared her down.

Emma held her chin up and stared right back him. "That's my kid's mother you're talking about." And that meant something. It always meant something. She could not figure out what it was, but it always made her see Regina in a different light.

"That's a murderous villain we're talking about."

"Yeah, just like you." Emma sneered at him. "Look, you want to pal around with David all you want, be my guest, but you're not getting a job as deputy as long as I'm sheriff. Maybe everyone else forgot you brought Cora here, kidnapped Archie, and shot Belle, but I'm not them. I'm not waiting around for you to find a better deal and betray us all while hurting the most harmless among us."

David stepped in. "Emma, don't you think you're being hard on him?"

"No, I think you're being easy. The fact that you'd bring him here, for this job, knowing what he really wants, especially after I said no before…" Emma could only shake her head. There were no words and even if there were her voice abandoned her. There was a swelling inside of her and she wanted to sob, but not in front of them. She would be stone in front of them.

"He wants to protect you," David said.

"That's a funny way to say fuck me. I'm done with this." Emma threw up her hands. "Thanks for wasting my time. I need to get the hell out of here and Hook also needs to get the hell out of here. Don't dare bring this bastard around me again." She rushed off, wishing she could slam the door behind her, but it was not that type of door. She needed to get to her car, so she could let everything out.

Once inside the safety of the Bug, Emma screamed at the top of her lungs and drove off as tears escaped her eyes. David, her own father, cared so little for her, he wanted her to be with Hook. Hook had done nothing but hurt them up until Neverland, where he was not as much help as one would expect for a guy who practically lived there. But, her father, who wanted her to be a hero above all else wanted her to give herself to a pirate. No. Just no.

Fathers were not supposed to want their daughters to be with the bad boy. Not good fathers anyway. Not fathers who cared. David did not care. He was not her father. She might want parents, like she had all of her life, but she did not have parents, like she had all of her life.

Emma could not make it home fast enough. Henry called her before she got there, though. "What's up, Henry? I'm on my way home."

"Yeah, when will you be here?" his voice was low, shaky.

"In a couple of minutes. Why?"

"Because Mom's sitting in the corner in the living room and she says she won't leave until you say so."

Well, fuck. Emma was now tempted to stop for a drink on drive to New York. Unfortunately, she could not leave Henry in this mess, so she went home and, sure enough, Regina was parked in a corner, like a naughty child. Well, a naughty child with perfect posture and her legs tucked under her in an interesting way. It was disturbing, but it hit her in two different, almost opposite ways.

_No, no, no, no. Don't even go down that road_. Right now, Henry needed both of his mothers and he needed one mother to get out of the corner without his other mother thinking creepy thoughts. Emma was not ready to deal with this. _Maybe this is all a ploy to get me to take up drinking_. It was working.

-8-8-8-8-

Next time: Regina continues on trying to be a good servant and Emma continues to try to hold the town together.

A/N: go check out my book Taming the Wind on Amazon under the name S.L. Kassidy. Leave me a review. Thanks.


	7. Something to Cry About

I don't own these characters; Disney/ABC does.

7: Something to Cry About

Regina heard the door open and could feel it was Emma. It was a strange pull inside of her, a tickle. It was not new. She could not recall the first time she felt the weird sensation, but she noticed it in Neverland when doing magic lessons. It was a little stronger after they moved the moon. Did Emma feel it too? No idea. This was not something they managed to talk about being returning to Storybrooke and living this strange life.

There was silence, thick and tense, so Regina remained in the corner of the living room. She had probably been there about thirty minutes. Was that an appropriate amount of time for insulting Emma's mother? She would soon find out.

Emma sighed, sounding quite exhausted. "Regina, what are you doing? Beyond freaking our kid out, anyway."

"You said for punishments I should go to the nearest corner," Regina replied. _I probably should've set out snacks or something to entertain Emma before I came here. She sounds tired and I should make her life easier rather than worse. I always make things worse_. The realization stung.

Emma moved closer, standing near enough for Regina to feel her body heat. Emma put her hands on her hips. "We both know I wasn't being serious."

"Yes, but I still need an appropriate punishment when I step out of line." Regina felt like going to a corner worked, even if Emma did not mean it. She felt reprimanded with this along with a healthy dose of humiliation. And it gave her time to think about what she had done and why it was wrong. She had also planned dinner while there.

Emma made a weird noise, like a pained grunt. She stomped the rest of the way to Regina and flopped down next to her. "Can you please just get out of the corner? Henry called me and sounded completely freaked out."

Regina took a breath. She had no desire to disturb Henry, but she craved and required order. She would be no good to him if she remained as she was, a plague unto people. He would need to understand that.

"Regina," Emma said.

"But, I was bad." Regina was surprised by how young she sounded. Somewhere inside of her, five-year-old Regina quivered at the thought of being bad. Bad meant she failed to listen and did her own thing, the _wrong_ thing. Bad meant Mommy did not love her. _But, she didn't, couldn't, and you killed her because you don't listen. Are you going to kill Emma next by not listening?_

"Oh, yeah? How?" Emma had the nerve to sound skeptical, like she had never witnessed Regina's terror.

Regina kept her eyes on the wall. "I purposely hurt your mother."

Emma winced. "She was here?"

"Doing a check."

Emma hummed. "Of course she'd come here to make sure you were being a slave, but not to see how I'm doing or how her freaking grandkid is doing." Out of the corner of her eye, Regina could see Emma shaking her head. "How'd you hurt her?" There was a curiosity in her tone.

Regina clutched her knees for a moment, considering telling the story so she would not sound so horrible. _No, you have to be honest or you'll stay in the corner_. "I told her she didn't know you and instead of trying to get to know you, she's trying to make you into what she wants. And I told her she wanted a savior more than a child."

Emma let out loud breath through her nose. "You're not wrong."

"I wanted to hurt her." And maybe protect Emma. Emma deserved better.

"I know the feeling."

Regina gave Emma a wide-eyed look and then quickly turned back to the corner. "Be that as it may, I do not have that right. I am a mere servant." It needed to be said.

Emma shook her head once more. "You're not."

"I am. It's what I agreed to. What you agreed to as well." Things would be better this way. She would be better this way.

Emma sighed and scratched her head. "So this is about honoring agreements?"

"This is about doing what's best for all of us."

"How is this best for all of us? You're sitting in the corner for fuck's sake, like you're on timeout. It's freaking me and Henry out."

Regina ducked her head a little. "You just need to get used to it. If I'm here, I'm not out hurting anyone, like the other day. This is why I need to wear the irons as well. I don't want your reputation to be dragged because of me as well. These people are idiots. They won't realize how much they need you until it's too late and I don't want things to come to that because you'll feel guilty."

Emma scoffed and arched an eyebrow. "So, you're trying to be helpful? Trying to help me?"

Regina frowned at Emma's skepticism. It was fair. She had tried to hurt Emma more than she had helped, but it was not all bad between them.

"Wouldn't it make your life easier if I was here, doing as I agreed?" Regina asked. They both knew the answer to that.

Emma sighed and stared off into space for a long moment. "What if life wasn't meant to be easy?"

It probably was not, not from what Regina could tell anyway, but that did not matter. "Who cares what it's meant to be? We can make it easy right now. You don't have to worry about an angry mob after me and hopefully there will be some order in this madhouse. I can take care of in here and you can take care of out there. I know you care about the town, about those people, but they're driving you crazy already. You won't have to worry once you come inside."

Emma's shoulders slumped. She knew the truth. "This isn't right."

"And maybe that's really life."

Emma was quiet. Life was not fair and things were not right. Regina was done fighting against that now. That should make things easier for both of them. It might not solve all their problems, but it was better than making matters worse.

Emma sighed. "Look, if this what you need, fine. I'll talk to Henry, but we're not accepting you as a slave."

"A surrender doesn't need to be accepted." Not if the opponent would not harm the person surrendering after the person gave up.

"Yeah, it really does. Besides, you're too tough to surrender. Now, get out of the corner." Emma patted her on the shoulder and got up.

Regina watched Emma disappear upstairs, probably to go talk to Henry. Regina shook her head. She was not tough. She was stubborn and stupid. She fought fate and it had brought her nothing but misery. It brought misery to those she cared about. She would let that burden go and take care of the only two people who mattered.

"And if I'm going to do that, I should get started on a grocery list." She went to the kitchen to take inventory on food as well as other household items they might need.

She had plans to go shopping alone, but she wanted Emma's permission to leave the house. She was not surprised both Emma and Henry wanted to go with her. It was not her place to argue, so she accepted. Emma and Henry squeaked.

"That was too easy," Emma said in a stage whisper to Henry.

"This might be a trap," Henry replied.

"Or I might need a ride," Regina said, if only to cease the suspicions.

"Yeah, what happened to your car?" Henry asked.

"The town was gifted my car and they took parts." Well, really, they ripped it apart in front of her, but Henry did not need to know that. He did not need to worry about her. She tried not to remember how the townsfolk fell upon her car, though. Hyenas on a carcass were more civil.

Henry's face twitched, but he did not say anything. Emma led him out of the house with Regina behind them, head ducked down a little. She needed to get used to the position. She got in the backseat of the car. Henry paused, like this was trick or something.

"Mom?" Henry said.

"Please." Regina motioned to the front seat.

Henry looked to Emma, who shrugged. He hopped in the front seat and made a show of buckling up. Emma looked at Regina in the rearview mirror and Regina turned to look out of the window. Henry started talking, rambling really as he fiddled with the ancient radio. He never settled on a station and each change rumbled through Regina. It did not help she could feel Emma's eyes on her, cutting into her. Regina was not sure how she did not crumble before they got to the supermarket.

The supermarket was open, which was a bit lucky. Regina knew from sitting with the Royal Council while awaiting her punishment, they had to beg and bargain with some people to keep necessary businesses open. They ended up having to cow to peasants, as the Curse had nobles working in the "lowly" grocery store jobs, except for the managers anyway. It stung the Council's pride, but they would be facing food riots if the supermarkets did not stay open. This was shown in the full parking lot. People were stocking up, just in case one day they came by and the supermarkets were closed forever.

"This place is packed," Emma said as she pulled into an empty spot.

"At least it's open," Henry replied, as if he knew how close they were to not having a place to get food.

When they got out, there were stares and Regina tried to maintain her position at the back, but that was not possible. She was the one who knew what the house needed, so she had to lead. She grabbed a cart and kept her head down. It did not do much, beyond signal to those around her that she was meek and wanted to be left alone. _Don't do anything beyond what you're meant to do_.

There were mutters and grumbling from every direction. Regina ignored and began putting items into the cart. Henry also put things in the cart and, for a moment, Regina had a flash of her son at seven. He had run up and down these same aisles and hunted for treasures, which he secured in the cart, hoping to be indulged.

"Hey!" Emma's raised voice pulled Regina from her memory. Emma had her hand pressed into the chest of a large man.

"It ain't right that she just gets to be free!" The man glared and pointed at Regina. He had murder in his eyes. Or maybe it was justice.

"She's not free! You see she's got on shackles. She's shopping for me," Emma said.

The man's face scrunched up and he looked down at Emma. "Oh, right. She's yours." He sneered at Regina. "Well, don't take it easy on her. Make sure you beat her daily for all of us. And make sure she's hungry all the time."

There were loud noises of agreement. "Beat her! Beat her! Beat her!" It was as if they wanted it to happen right now. Regina could not have been surprised if someone pressed a whip into Emma's hand.

Emma turned her mouth up and she squinted, possibly trying to make sense of the request. What the man, and the growing crowd, desired was not out of the norm for prisoner of war servants, which Regina was. In fact, she would be lucky if Emma only beat her considering what she had done to her prisoners of war.

The townspeople could not wait to tell Emma what to do with Regina when it was clear Emma was not going to bash her right in front of them. Many did not they care that Henry was right there as they offered their suggestions. They wanted whippings, brandings, body violations with various objects, her lips sown shut, her eyes burned out, fingers, hands, toes, and feet cut off, and so many other horrors that Regina understood. Emma was dismissive of all suggestions, waving them off.

"Look, I don't care about any of that stuff. I'm just trying to get some shopping done, like everybody else," Emma said. Insisted, really, to anyone who offered her ideas on what to do with Regina. But, maybe she stored some away.

Yes, Emma was a good person, but Regina had put her through a lot. Revenge would not be crazy or frowned upon. People would probably applaud Emma and Emma was only human.

Regina was pulled from those thoughts as Henry rattled the cart, dropping a carton of ice cream in the cart. He grinned at her, hoping she would let it stay. Little did he know, it was no longer her place to say. Emma was in charge and since she said nothing, Regina said nothing. _Hopefully, Emma won't let Henry just eat sugar_. At least she was there to make sure they had homemade, healthy meals.

Shopping with her head down seemed to take all eternity and Regina could feel the hatred toward her, stabbing at her like a million hot needles. Her skin itched under her bonds. Her blood hummed in her ears and her clothes grew damp as sweat pricked her skin. She did not feel comfortable again until they were back in the townhouse.

But, even being home was not quite what Regina expected. As she put the groceries away, she could feel Emma's eyes on her and it did not feel good. There was tension in the house, just not as oppressive as outside. It did not get better when it was time for bed.

"Mom still doesn't have a place to sleep," Henry said and then he held up a finger to Regina before she could open her mouth. "And don't say you'll take the couch."

Regina glanced at Emma, who shrugged. She would show Emma, but she did not want to say where she would sleep in front of Henry. It was one thing to be a servant in front of him, but another matter altogether for him to see the full extent of what that meant.

"I have a place to sleep," Regina said.

Henry looked at Emma, who shrugged again. Henry's eyes went back to Regina and she nodded. He studied her, mistrustful as ever.

"I promise," Regina said. He took a breath, but did not say anything. That was enough for him and that felt good. He believed her. He hugged them both and then disappeared upstairs.

"You have some place to sleep? Since when?" Emma arched an eyebrow and folded her arms across her chest.

Regina took a deep breath, steeling herself and trying to prepare for Emma's reaction. She doubted this was going to go over well, but it was necessary. "Yes. Come and I will show you."

That eyebrow did not go down and Regina marched upstairs. Emma followed and they ended up in Emma's bedroom. Regina glanced back to see a wrinkle between Emma's eyebrows. Poor Emma. She was about to be in for a surprise.

"Look, Regina, I know this room is huge, like I could fit my last apartment in it, but your room isn't in here," Emma said.

"No, my place to sleep is in here. They want you to be able to keep an eye on me at all times in the house and they want me close to serve you. So, this is where I'm supposed to sleep." Regina went to the wall opposite the bed. It had a fireplace built in and Regina put her hand on a sturdy loop. A key lock dangled from it.

Emma came closer and glared at the bolt. "What the hell is that?" The way her voice shook, maybe she knew and refused to believe.

"There's a chain hanging on the door in the closet. You may or may not have noticed it if you've gone in the closet." Regina nodded toward the closed walk-in, which she was sure Emma had not bothered to look in. "A chain and another lock. You use one lock to connect the chain to my collar." She put her finger under the hoop on her collar, holding it up. "You use the other lock to connect the chain to the wall."

Emma scowled. "And the chain is just long enough for you to sleep on the floor."

"It is."

Emma gritted her teeth and snarled. "And I'm supposed to just chain you to the wall and let you sleep on the floor while I sleep not even eight feet away in a king sized bed?"

"Yes."

Emma reeled back and flung her arms around. "Fuck, no! I'm not doing that. I'm not chaining you to a fucking wall. I'm not treating you like a slave."

Regina was not surprised by Emma's reaction. It warmed her, knowing Emma cared. That was why this was fine. Emma would take care of her, would not steer her wrong, and would not let her ruin everything with her bad decisions.

"Emma, do this for me," Regina said.

"How the hell does this help? What if Henry comes in here and sees this shit?" Emma's face was red, as if it was boiling over in her as she struggled to not scream. "It was already Hell explaining to him why his mom was sitting in a fucking corner after I told her to do that as punishment."

Regina nodded. "I'm sorry. I'm putting too much on you." She was still being a villain to Emma, hurting Emma. "If you prefer, I'll talk to him."

Emma sighed and rubbed her forehead. "That makes more sense. You know better than me why you need stuff."

"All right. I'll do it." Now that she had permission anyway. "Should I get the chain?"

Emma shook her head. "I'm still not chaining you to the wall. And you're not sleeping on the floor."

"Then where will I sleep? You can't give me a room. Your mother and the Royal Council wouldn't stand for it. The moment they think you're taking it easy on me, I'll be removed from your custody." And she would not be able to see Henry. A pain shot through her chest and she winced. "Emma, I need my son."

Emma nodded. "I know. Henry is everything. It's okay." She held up her hands, as if that would help keep Regina calm. "Look, I can't let you sleep on the floor. I just can't. I know how that shit feels and I can't treat the mother of my kid like a dog."

That made sense. _Emma cares for you. Serve her well_. "I'll show you to create a cot." Maybe that would make things better.

Emma gnawed on the inside of her cheek for a moment. "Okay… um… could you maybe show me some other magic stuff?"

Regina tilted her head. "Like?"

Emma's hand went to the back of her neck. "I dunno. Something to help me in the field. I'm, you know, it." She shrugged. "There's no backup, no Dad, no you. It's just me out there and if it's too many people… like when you were down…"

Regina held up a finger. "Say no more. We can do magic lessons." She would not allow anything to happen to Emma if it could be helped.

"Yeah, but first, let's make you a bed."

"Cot."

"Whatever."

As expected, Emma took to the magic lesson well. Distress worked wonders on Emma and her magical abilities. It gave Regina good idea on how much Emma did not want her on the floor. _From this moment on, you have to stop causing Emma these types of problems. You have to make her life easier_.

"You have pajamas and stuff, right?" Emma asked.

"I was left with the basics."

"The basics of your wardrobe?"

"No, the basics in general. My wardrobe was donated, except for five outfits, which I assume are for whenever I need to look decent for you."

Emma rubbed the back of her neck. "Man, they really took everything from you, huh?"

Regina smiled. "Not everything." She had what mattered.

Emma smiled, like she got it, and then collapsed into bed. Regina disappeared into the bathroom, not master bathroom, but the one down the hall, to put on her linen nightshirt. It was shapeless and itchy, a far cry from the silk she once slept in. She brushed her teeth and then re-entered the master bedroom. She turned off the light and settled on her cot. She could work with this. She could be good and do the right thing.

-8-8-8-8-

Emma stared at the dark ceiling. _What the fuck am I doing?_ The logical part of her told her to grab Henry and Regina and get the hell out of town as quickly as the Bug would allow. But, a quiet part of her, a part that whispered to her heart told her she could not abandon the first place to feel like home. Storybrooke was home and she would not feel right leaving the town in turmoil. Plus, her parents were here. She needed to try with them, even if it was becoming more and more apparent she was an afterthought to them.

_You keep giving them chances, but they don't want you, not really. David's pushing you to the first idiot to show an interest and Snow's biggest regret is not raising you. Not because of what happened to you, but because she didn't get to be a mother. It's not even because she didn't get to be _your_ mother, but a mother in general. The Curse is broken and we all know eventually Snow and Prince Charming will have a real child, just like when the Swans adopted you, but had their own baby. It's only a matter of time_. And when that time came, Emma would take Henry and Regina and flee this cursed place.

Funny how she never thought of Storybrooke as cursed until now. Of course, she had not realized it was home until recently. It was just a place, like Henry was just a kid and Regina was just a pain in the ass. But, gradually things had changed. Some for the better, but mostly for the worst. She lost a best friend, gained status she did not desire, and lived a life of madness now as she tried to hold things together.

Emma did not recall falling asleep, was not sure _how_ she fell asleep, but woke up to the smell of coffee hanging in the air. The alluring aroma was enough to get her out of bed and into the shower. _Thank God it's Sunday_. She sighed into the hot shower spray. Her muscles relaxed and she almost never wanted to get out, but she remembered the coffee. With her hair damp and dripping, she exited the shower and wrapped herself in a fluffy towel. _Where did these come from? Did they used to belong to Regina? Is someone else drying themselves with Regina's old towels?_

She shook the thoughts away and went back into the master bedroom. Her eyes went automatically to the bolt in the fireplace. She had not noticed it before when she was in the room, but now it stood out like the Bat signal was shining on it.

Beneath the bolt, Regina's cot was folded up with her sheets neatly placed on top of it. What time was it and when did Regina get up? Emma reached for her phone and saw it was almost ten. She had been able to sleep late. A smile settled in her heart. Something so small should not have meant so much.

She moved to get dressed, deciding to see what else was in her closet beyond a chain to tether Regina to a wall. The walk-in closet was pretty bare considering Emma hardly owned ten outfits and they all looked the same. She thought about before Neverland and how she had borrowed Snow's clothes, a blatant attempt to fit in with her parents, her family. A cry for help that went unanswered.

She scratched her wet head. "Too early to be so philosophical."

She grabbed some sweatpants, underwear, and a tank top. Looking around, did people often get dressed in their giant walk in closets? She would today. _Probably should put the stuff from my travel bag in here_. That was where she had been getting her gear from until now.

Going downstairs, she could hear Regina and Henry talking in low tones. She found Henry sitting at the kitchen counter while Regina was in the kitchen. Regina presented her with a mug of coffee. Emma inhaled the steam.

"This is what Heaven has to smell like," Emma said.

"And it probably tastes like this breakfast burrito," Henry said.

Emma's eyes went wide. "Breakfast burrito? I take it back. This must be Heaven." And she never wanted to leave.

"We're not dead yet," Regina replied.

Emma only nodded, even though that felt like a rallying cry. The breakfast burrito definitely was like tasting Heaven. After breakfast, she and Henry were finally able to really go through items in the house and determine if things were actually theirs. Most of the stuff belonged to them and things that did not seem to come from Regina's house. _Spoils of war_. It was almost enough for Emma to lose her breakfast burrito, but it was better than the things belonging to someone else. At least Regina actually lived with them.

"All my comic books are here!" Henry grinned and clutched one of many boxes to his chest. At least it would give him some sense of normalcy. "And this thing!" He held up a tiny handprint.

Emma squinted as she looked at it. "Oh, something you made for your mom when you were little."

"Yup. I bet she'll like it. I'll give it back to her." He did just that when they went down for lunch and from the way Regina hugged the bit of dried clay to her chest, a passerby would have thought he gave her the crown jewels.

Grilled cheese, homemade fries, and small bowls of chili were served for lunch. Emma could hardly believe it but since Regina did not say anything, Emma did not either. She simply enjoyed the food and then a phone call pulled her from her little slice of heaven. There was an emergency.

Emma sighed. "Duty calls."

"You got this!" Henry beamed, giving her two thumbs up.

Emma had no doubt about that, but it would be nice to have a full day off. She threw on some jeans and was off. Hopefully, this would not take too long.

Of course the call was because of something stupid. There was a mob outside the tailor's shop. The front window was gone, bits of glass in the street, and the window display on fire. There were a bunch of people outside the store, but she could not tell if they started the fire or not.

Emma could only wonder what happened as she pushed the mob back as the fire department arrived. Most of the people escaped in the chaos, but Emma got a statement from the tailor. The mob formed after a customer, who thought the tailor charged too much, accused the tailor of being a villain.

"Because you charge a lot?" Emma asked.

He shook his head. "A villain from the Old World. Look, I don't want any trouble. I just want to make clothes and live a peaceful life. I've been drawn into other people's nonsense before."

"In the Old World?" Obviously a charming place to live.

"Yes. I haven't done anything here." He held his hands up in surrender.

Emma shook her head. "I don't have any evidence that you have." She had no plans to arrest him for stuff in another life.

He blinked. "You believe me?"

"Yeah, built in lie detector. Besides, what good does it do you to set your own shop on fire with yourself inside?"

He looked at his shop. "Funny thing is, my crimes weren't even in the Enchanted Forest. I was from Qin and fleeing a different mess only to be caught up in this mess. The only reason these guys even know I was a villain there was because the forces chasing us got caught up, too."

Emma nodded. "Well, for now, I'd recommend you getting some cameras, stronger glass, gates, and maybe a door you can open and close by remote. Can you name any of the people harassing you?"

"I'd rather not."

She expected as much. He was trying to avoid trouble, but staying silent would not help. "You know I can't do much if you don't help me, Mister Hou. All you're doing is telling the people that did this is they can come back because you're not going to stop them."

"I just want a quiet life. I'll take your suggestions into consideration."

Emma sighed and put her notepad away. Mister Hou walked back to his smoldering shop. The structure was still there. He could rebuild… if people let him. The fire department did a good job.

Emma glanced at the fire fighters. The squad was smaller than it used to be, but they were there. She needed a small squad. It would help with investigating this, which she would do even if the tailor did not want to be bothered. She had a job to do and she would do it as best she could. Besides, she could not let this go without at least trying to make it right or it would let people think things like this was all right to do. Everyone deserved to be safe in these uncertain times.

"Time to go to work then," she said to herself, moving to find out if the fire department had any evidence for her to work with. She would go from there.

It felt like forever before Emma could drag herself home. Emma was greeted at the door by the smell of dinner. She toed her boots off, as the townhouse just seemed like the kind of place she should not wear her outside shoes inside. By the time she got out of her boots, Regina stood before her.

"Are you all right? You were gone a while," Regina said.

"Yeah, well, I'm a one woman show and this town has lost its collective little mind."

"Well, you're home now. Go have a shower. I set out clothes for you and then you can have dinner."

Emma nodded, even though that was weird. Still, she was too tired to do anything, but obey. She took a long, hot shower and put on the comfortable clothes waiting on the bed. Once she was in the worn pajama pants and tank top, she felt human again. It was nice and only got nicer when she got downstairs. Regina handed her a beer.

"How do you know my brand?" Emma asked as she accepted the bottle. They had not purchased any beer on their shopping trip.

Regina smirked. "I have my ways."

"She asked Ruby," Henry said with a laugh.

"Thank you, Henry. Ruin all my mystic," Regina replied.

Henry snickered and they sat down for dinner. Well, Henry and Emma sat. Regina stood off to the side.

"Regina, sit down. Eat with us," Emma said. They could be normal, better than the outside world.

Regina wasted no time sitting across from Henry. Emma smiled. _What if what happened with the tailor happened with Regina? People wouldn't come here and burn the place down with her in it, right?_ She hoped not. Beyond Regina, were any "villains" safe to just live their lives? She would have to wait to see.

-8-8-8-8-

Emma sighed from her desk and scrubbed her face with both hands. Days had passed and Emma had not found a deputy. She put out the word she was looking and no one showed up, including Hook, which she was happy about. But, she needed help, even with the few magic lessons Regina offered her. It was impossible to police a town this size with one person.

She was not sure if people were not looking for work or if they had their own problems to deal with. It was probably more the latter than the former. The more she interacted with people, the more it was obvious they did not what to do with themselves in this world and seemed hell-bent on refusing to try because they had been brought here against their will. She could understand that, but they needed to start making the most of a bad situation, like she was trying to do without a deputy.

Ruby offered to take the spot at the end of the week, but she was trying to find her own replacement at _Granny's_. As it turned out, not many people were willing to take the waitress position, finding it too close to "tavern wench." That was a rather lowly position in the Enchanted Forest, so now no one wanted to do it. She would like to know the excuse as to why no one wanted to be a deputy.

Emma's phone buzzed and took her mind off of that. _Please don't be an emergency_. She could barely stand up anymore. The only thing keeping her together and moving was stubbornness. She would not let this place beat her. She would not let life beat her.

"Sheriff Swan," Emma answered the call.

"Sheriff Swan, this is Principal."

Her heart leaped into her throat. "Is Henry okay?" Regina would kill her, bring her back to life, kill her again, and then burn the whole town down if something happened to Henry.

"Yes, but I am calling out of concern."

"What happened?" She was already out of her seat and at the door. Her heart felt like it would explode at any second. _Should I go to the house and get Regina or just go to the school?_

"Henry was picked up and taken out of school."

Emma paused at the door and rubbed her chin. "I'm sure Regina had a good reason." Why would Regina not mention she had plans to take Henry out of school, though?

"Oh, no. It wasn't the Queen."

And her heart was back in her throat and on the brink of explosion. "What? Snow or David then?" She hoped it was them. They had not seen their grandson since they got back from Neverland. Henry would love to spend some time with them. It would give her hope that her parents were starting to realize they had a family.

"No, and that's why I'm calling. This was not someone who was on the card as authorized to pick Henry up."

Emma's heart seized. Was Henry kidnapped? "Who the hell did my kid leave with?" She would kill them!

"His father."

"Fuck." Yup, she would kill him. "Why the hell would you let him leave with fucking Neal?" She stomped to her car, planning to hunt for Neal and her son.

"The office called Snow White since she once worked here to find out if the man was Henry's father. Henry backed the claim and Queen Snow said it was fine."

"It's not fine! He's not allowed to take Henry out of school!" What the hell was wrong with these people? Her kid might be on his way to who-the-hell-knows-where with his scumbag sperm donor! She would find them and skin Neal alive if he took Henry out of Storybrooke.

"The office was led to believe you did not update the contact card."

Fucking Snow. It was bad enough she kept popping up on Regina when no one else was home, but now this. "The card is how I want it to be."

"Understood. I called to be sure. I know these are chaotic times."

"Yeah. Look, I gotta go find my kid. Thanks for the call." She disconnected the call. She was going to kill Neal the moment she found him.

-8-8-8-8-

Next time: dealing with Neal and Henry disappearing with Neal.

A/N: go check out my book, _Taming the Wind_, on Amazon under the name S.L. Kassidy. Thank you.


	8. The Eyes Glaze Over Once

I don't own these characters; Disney/ABC does.

8: The Eyes Glaze Over Once

It took no effort at all to find Henry and Neal, but it took all of Emma's self control to not mow him down with her car as she pulled up to the dilapidated park. She hit the curb as she parked and forgot to turn the car off as she kicked the door open. She tore out only to be yanked back in by the seat belt. She gagged and cursed.

As her back hit the seat, she realized the engine was still running. She turned the engine off and freed herself from the seat belt. Of course, by now she had lost the element of surprise. Neal and Henry stared at her as she slammed the door.

"You son of bitch!" Emma stormed over to the lying bastard. "How dare you take my kid out of school?" She balled her hands into tight fists, ready to lay him out in the street again.

Neal held his hands up in surrender and had the nerve to smile at her. "Whoa, calm down. He's my son, too."

Emma felt like she would literally blow up in front of him. The only thing stopping her from punching was Henry standing right there, but she was not sure how long that would work. "No, he's not!''

He laughed. The asshole had the nerve to laugh. "Obviously the school thought so to release him to me."

Emma growled and her body trembled with rage. She could hear her blood pressure rising. "The school did that because of my mother."

He folded his arms across his chest and puffed up a little bit. "Oh, so someone else understands I'm his father."

How Emma did not have an aneurysm, she had no idea. As pissed as she was, she could not figure out how her head did not blow off of her shoulders. "You are not his father! You don't anything about him!" She shoved him with one hand and he fell back a little.

Neal scoffed as he regained his balance. "From what I hear, you didn't know much about him until he popped up at your door last year."

Emma flinched and something inside her shifted. Shame began to creep into her anger, simmering it down somehow. Her fists unclenched. "I wanted to give his best chance."

He smiled, trying to look cute and harmless. "Maybe we're his best chance." He pointed to himself and then her.

"We stopped being his best chance when I went to prison and you abandoned us. And I see you're still setting a great example, having him cut school with you." _Whoa, pot. Say hi to the kettle_.

"That's enough!" Henry stepped in between them and he glared at her. "This is my dad, Emma."

Emma ground her teeth. "And what, I'm just the lady that gave you away?" _Fuck_. That was what she was, who she was. _I'm kidding myself that I'm his mother, just like I've been kidding myself that I have parents. I'm nothing. No one ever wants me and no matter how hard I try for this town, they'll never really want me either_.

Henry flinched, rearing back a little. "What? No! You're my mom!"

Emma shook her head. "Yeah, when you're pissed at your real mom then I'm your mom. But, only then. Now, you're going to stand here say he's your dad? This asshole you just met?" _What the actual fuck? I should've run while I had the chance, run before I remembered what the hell I really am_. Now, she had a hole inside of her, ready to eat right through her.

Henry waved his hands as his face turned red. "It's not like that! Look, don't be mad at him. I left with him. And it's not like it's the first time I've cut school." He narrowed his gaze on her.

"This is different." Emma felt like a hypocrite. _Damn, I deserve the parents I have. I can just justify any of my bullshit, huh? _

He continued to give her this accusatory look. "How? I'm trying to get to know a parent."

She scoffed. _I'm not a parent. I'm nothing_. "You were trying to break an evil curse before." _That's all I'm good for, breaking this stupid fucking curse and I couldn't even do that right_. It was like she did not love Henry properly and that was why the Curse broke only partially and why he would accept Neal as his dad right away while she was nothing under the right circumstances. Her chest hurt so much.

He practically glowered at her like, almost like she was the enemy. Was this how he used to look at Regina? "Yeah, but you didn't believe me and you still met with me."

Emma sighed, trying to push down all of the sorrow she felt. Instead, it seemed to spread, seep into every part of her being. "Because it seemed like you needed someone to be there for you, kid." Maybe that was still the case. She was not a mother and she had allowed his real mother to be turned into a slave. Obviously, he needed someone and she was not worth it. But, she could not let him think Neal was someone who would be there for him. It would only lead to heartache.

Neal jumped in. "So, it sounds like it was okay for him to cut school when it was with you."

Emma wished she could kill Neal with a look. "Shut up. You weren't there. You don't know what happened."

Henry stomped. "Cut it out!" He looked at Emma like she was the problem. "He's my dad and I want to get to know him. You know how I am when I set my mind to something. It's gonna happen."

Emma would love to beat Henry for that threat, but that would not help. Hell, she knew beatings did not help. He had her over a barrel and with the determination in his eyes, he knew it. Emma's shoulders slumped, burdened by the truth. Neal would eventually crush Henry and the poor kid had welcomed that into his life, demanded that in his life.

Emma held up a hand. "Look, I'll talk to your mom and see how she wants to do this." She would not let Henry run this show, but she was not in charge either. She did not matter.

"I'm not sure I'm comfortable with that," Neal said.

Emma looked at him as if he were truly insane, which he had to be. "Excuse me?" Who the fuck does Neal think he is?

Neal shrugged. "I'm just saying I've heard all types of shit about her, Emma, and I don't think Henry should be around her. She sounds dangerous."

The nerve of this little bitch! "Like your fucking father?"

His smug nonchalance vanished and glowered at her. "My father is trying to change. He's better for me."

Emma wagged a finger at him. "Don't con a conman, Neal." Gold would never be fine and Neal had to know that.

"Hey!" Henry held up his hands, blocking their view of each other. "I'm standing right here!"

Emma took a breath. It did not ease any of the pain humming through her, splintering her bones. "Okay, Henry, we will talk about you spending time with Neal. But, no more cutting school." She might mean nothing to Henry, but she would do her best to do right by him, anyway. She still wanted him to have his best chance. He might never appreciate it, but she owed it to him.

"Technically, it's not a cut," Henry replied.

"Technically, I don't think your mom will care. You still missed class and knowingly left with an unapproved adult," Emma replied.

"I'm his dad," Neal said.

"And she's his mom."

"She's the Evil Queen!"

"You don't even know what that means!" Emma threw her hands up. He was just repeating nonsense others had told him.

"I know she's responsible for thousands of deaths. I know you and the kid had to break her curse. So, instead of getting involved with someone like that, why don't we all go to the diner and sit down like a family?"

Emma thought she was having a stroke. She tried to speak, but only gagging noises come out. She could not breathe, choking on his goddamn audacity. Family? Did he really just have the nerve to mention family to her, as if his decisions were not the reason they were not a family? Was she supposed to forgive and forget that he sent her to prison and ruined any chance she had at raising a baby on her own? Was she expected to forget his abandonment led her to making the hardest decision in her life? Was she supposed to forget she had a baby while handcuffed to a fucking bed, a baby she could not even look at because she knew if she looked at him, she would ruin both of their lives?

"You know what, Neal, go straight to Hell." She had never meant words as much as she did now. "Henry, go get in the car."

"Emma—" Henry tried to say, but she was done.

"Go get in the car now." She did not care if he did not see her as a parent. She would not allow him to ruin his life by running around with Neal without any sort of supervision.

Henry did not say anything, scurrying over to the car. Emma glared at Neal. He was an arrogant asshole and she used to be him. She could make all the excuses she wanted, but she had felt entitled to Henry because she birthed him. Neal felt entitled to Henry, too, but they were both so wrong.

Emma's finger shook as she held it in Neal's face. "Stay the fuck away from him or I won't hesitate to spread your sorry ass all over the street. That crime, I'll happily go to jail for." She turned on her heel and marched off to her car. She slammed the door once she was safely inside.

The silence on the ride home threatened to strangle Emma, which was something she wanted to do to Henry. Storybrooke was one spark away from exploding and he was out with the village idiot. She had to talk to him, but not now. She needed to calm down.

-8-8-8-8-

Regina did not know what to make of Emma and Henry entering the house in a huff, slamming the door and stomping about as if they planned to break through the floor. By the time she saw them, Henry was clomping upstairs and Emma looked like she wanted to put her fist through the wall. What happened between the usual co-conspirators?

"Can I get you anything?" Regina asked, hands folded in front of her. She bowed just enough, but Emma did not see.

"A son who listens." Emma glared up at the ceiling.

Ah, parenting woes. Regina was intimately familiar with those, but she was not sure that it was her place to say anything. She was a mere servant and the past few days proved she was good when she was not in control. She had been good and life had been smooth for the first time in a long time.

"What happened?" Regina asked.

Emma shook her head and scowled like she wanted to bring down the heavens. "He cut school to hang out with fucking Neal."

Regina swallowed so many words, so quickly it had to be a miracle she did not choke to death. Emma was finally getting a taste of her own medicine. Only thing was, Regina did not want that to happen. She was beyond that now. She was more concerned over the idea that Rumple's disheveled offspring was around their son, influencing Henry. That would not do them any good.

"Take a breath before you react," Regina said. It was advice that would have once served her well.

Emma frowned, eyes dubbing Regina the enemy for such lame advice. "And?"

Regina ignored the expression and the attitude. It was not her place to snap at Emma. She needed to keep order in the house, like any good servant would. "Maybe go have a bath? Unwind. You know talking to Henry while you're frustrated won't do any good."

Emma ground her teeth, but marched upstairs. Regina bit the inside of her cheek to avoid screaming at the top of her lungs. Now they had to deal with Neal? Neal wanted to claim their son? _And I'll bet he'll use Henry to try to get close to Emma_. Her throat seized at the thought and she wanted to teleport to the antique shop to throw him around a bit until he left her family alone.

Before Regina could settle and make sense of those thoughts, the house phone rang. "Hello, Swan residence," she answered.

"Is Emma there?" Snow's annoying voice asked.

"She's in the shower." And that was probably for the best. She could not see Snow helping Emma's state of mind right now.

Snow made a noise. "Let her know her father and I will be coming for dinner."

"When?" Of course Snow would invite herself over with no regard if Emma wanted company or not.

"Why does it concern you?"

_Do not strangle Snow through the phone. Do not strangle Snow through the phone_. "So, I should make a meal for three as usual?" She rolled her eyes.

Snow squeaked. "Right. We'll be by tonight. Make enough for three extras."

Regina frowned. "Who is your third?" This was going to be horrible no matter what Snow said. Emma was not in the mood to entertain, and definitely would not like whoever her parents brought over.

"It's none of your concern." And then the little bitch hung up.

Regina growled and she had half a mind to poison the food. It was not like her shackles kept her from working with herbs and other things. But, Henry would not approve and she doubted Emma would either.

So, instead of plotting, she went to the kitchen to see what she could make for six people. As she did that, she pulled out a beer for Emma, figuring a cold drink might help her relax. She had also made a few donuts, which Emma would surely appreciate.

"So, we need to talk about this Neal situation," Emma said as she pulled up a stool to her beer and donut on the countertop.

Regina turned from her bounty. They needed to talk? But, she was a servant, and not allowing herself opinions or decisions any longer. "I'm sure whatever you want to do is fine."

Emma picked at the label of the bottle. "I'm sure it isn't and this shit today made me realize I owe you an apology. It was a shit thing to do to encourage Henry to go behind your back."

Regina shrugged. "But, he was correct."

"I'm not an 'ends justifies the means' person, Regina. Wrong is wrong… most of the time anyway. It was wrong. I'm owning it, like you're owning your past deeds."

Regina held in a laugh. She did not think she owned anything. Yes, she understood she made poor choices and wrong decisions, but that was not why she stopped. She wanted to be near Henry, and maybe Emma. Without them, Regina would still be doing exactly as she had in the past. These people still did not matter to her. They had not saved her. No one ever bothered to save her, except this idiot at the countertop apologizing for doing the right thing.

"So, what should we do?" Emma asked, resting her chin on one hand and using the other to pick up her donut. "I mean, Neal took him out of school and he just went. The only reason I knew is because the principal was kind enough to call me." She took a big bite out of the donut and gulped the beer. The hum that left her crept into Regina's body, but she shook it away.

Regina rubbed her hands together. "Well, we know from past behavior, Henry will do what he wants, especially if he feels justified."

Emma's shoulders drooped and she shoved more of the donut in her mouth. "Not filling me with confidence right now. Henry can't possibly still think exactly the same way from a year ago. We've been through so much. We're all changed."

"Have we all?" Regina scratched at her bicep. She felt the same. Snow and David seemed to be the same. She knew nothing would ever change Rumple, even the near death of his grandson or the reunion with his own son. Emma was always a good person, but out of place in Storybrooke.

The question silenced Emma and she drank her beer without taking a breath. Regina eased another in front of her as she began dinner. Emma peeled the edge of the label again.

"Didn't expect you to be my bartender," Emma said, voice mumbled and mouth turned down.

"And personal chef." Regina winked at her.

Emma forced out a chuckle. "I feel like I'd be drinking a lot more if you weren't here."

"I just gave you two beers." And she would probably need more than that when Regina told her about the dinner guests.

Emma picked at the label a little more. "Yeah, but if you weren't here, I'd go to a bar. I'd probably close the _Rabbit Hole_ down actually. And I wouldn't eat while I did it." She shoved the rest of the donut in her mouth.

Regina frowned. "Even if you had Henry with you."

Emma's mouth twitched and she shook her head. "The idea of parenting on my own, even a kid like Henry, is scary and overwhelming. I'm going to ruin that kid, Regina. That's how I'd feel if it was just me. I'd ruin him."

Regina wagged her finger. "If I didn't ruin him, you wouldn't. I was utterly selfish with him and he still turned out fine." Well, somewhat fine. His behavior in Neverland was not the best and running off with Neal left something to be desired.

Emma stared at her beer bottle, eyes following a drop a water gliding down the neck. "Were you, though? Maybe you didn't want to share him with people, but you still made sure he had a decent childhood. You gave him what he needed. You raised a good person."

Regina felt her heart flutter. "You raised one as well."

Emma scoffed. "Thanks, but we both know sneaking around for a year doesn't make me a parent. I didn't raise anybody."

"I meant you. Despite everything you went through, you managed to make yourself a good person."

Emma sat up a little straighter and her eyes brightened a bit. "Thanks for that."

"And that's why you'd be fine with Henry."

With a scrunched up face, Emma rubbed her forehead. "How could I be a parent? I didn't even have parents."

"I don't think that's a quality marker. Speaking of your parents, they're coming to dinner."

Emma groaned and slumped onto the counter. "Oh, fuck me. Okay, I need you to bash my skull in or get me something stronger than beer."

"They may also have a mystery guest."

Emma put her hands on her head and groaned again into the marble. "Well, that could mean Hook or Neal, depending on whose bright idea this is. And is this normal? Like in the Other World did parents just push into their children's lives like this? Try to get them with the worst possible choice in mates to screw over their lives?"

Regina almost bit her tongue off to avoid answering that one to the best of her ability. She did not want to discourage Emma. "I'm the wrong person to ask that. Why Hook or Neal?"

Emma took a long pull of her beer. "My dad…" She made a face. "David wants me to be with Hook for some stupid reason while I think Snow has this weird idea I should give Neal a second chance for some reason."

"Those are simply poor choices. Besides, it doesn't have to be one or the other." She did not want Emma to think she needed to give to her parents, not because of Old World rules or just because those were her parents.

"Or either because fuck them. I know this is some True Love garbage, but the first two guys I meet don't have to be my true love."

"Agreed." Apparently, Emma was learning. Now, she needed to start standing up for herself before her parents drove her insane.

Emma nodded and downed the rest of her beer in a breath. She got up and stomped back upstairs. Regina sighed as she put the two empty bottles in the recycling bin and rinsed the small dish the donut had occupied. It probably would not be hard to poison the guests' meals and leave Henry and Emma unharmed. No one would have to know. They would just think they were sick. It was serve Snow and her prince right for trying to take Emma and Henry from her.

Regina set about her task and was only halfway done when the doorbell rang. She did not even have a chance to put on a decent outfit. Of course, why should Snow or Charming give anyone time to prepare for their arrival?

Regina answered the door to Snow White, David, and their guest, the wretched offspring of Rumpelstilskin. The sight of him made Regina's blood boil and she winced. Searing jolts come from her irons, warning her to calm down. Having no desire to pass out in front of this lot because of her shackles, Regina took a deep breath.

"Welcome to the Swan-Mills residence," Regina said as a greeting in the happiest voice she could muster. _I swear I have to look as demented as I feel with this stupid smile on my face_. Maybe it would scare off their guests.

"Mills?" David asked.

Snow glared at her as if she cursed them all over again. "You don't live here. You're a servant."

Regina clasped her hands together and kept smiling. Her face hurt. "But, Henry does live here and he is not."

"Henry's last name is Mills?" Neal asked.

Regina curled her lip at him. Here was another biological parent set to win her child over by virtue of being fifty percent of his genetic makeup and nothing more. He knew nothing about Henry, but would automatically be loved. No, she did not hold that against Emma anymore, but she doubted Neal would earn it. He did not seem like the type of dare going into a mine or learning magic to take on Peter Pan. He definitely was not a noble idiot trying to save a town from itself.

Before Regina said anything and possibly end up shocked by her shackles, Emma and Henry stormed downstairs. Emma was in jeans and a black Henley shirt. Henry jumped into hugs and handshakes while Emma looked ready to punch something. Snow and David did not seem to notice Emma's mood and hugged her. She did not hug back. Her eyes glistened and she bit her bottom lip as if to keep tears at bay.

"Dinner will be ready shortly. Until then, there are refreshments in the living room." Regina motioned to the aforementioned space. Emma did not deserve this prolonged humiliation.

"Wow, she seems well trained," the pretender prince had the nerve to say.

Fire raged in Regina, but it quickly felt like there was lava coursing through her veins, burning her from the inside. _Damn these irons!_ She gritted her teeth until the pain faded enough for her to move. Emma glanced at her, but she shook her head. Emma walked into the living room as if going to her execution. Regina went to the kitchen, but she could hear any conversation in the living room.

"Why the hell did you bring Neal here?" Emma asked, voice tired, but still incensed.

"We thought it'd be nice for Henry to see him," David replied.

Snow made a pleased chirp noise before she added on. "Plus, isn't it nice for our whole family to be together?"

Regina's knees buckled as fire danced on her fingertips. Hissing, she gathered her strength to remain on her feet. _Screw these damned irons_. If she acted fast enough, she could probably at least take Neal or Snow out before the pain ripped her into unconsciousness. The burning turned into tearing, like jagged glass shards going down her muscles. She would never make it in time. She glared at Snow for a moment before gathering herself. How dare Snow suggest Neal was family with Emma and Henry? _I could still poison their food_.

"I'm not family with Neal. I don't even want him in this house," Emma said.

There was a goofy laugh. Probably Neal. "C'mon, Emma."

"There is no 'c'mon'! This is like living in a nuthouse. Why the hell would I want to be family with him? Why would you want me to be family with him?" Emma's voice was loud, just below screaming.

"Emma, he did what he needed to, so you could come and break the Curse. So, you could save us," Snow said, showing just how much she did not get it.

Regina winced, even though she knew how dense Snow White was. Glancing in the living room, David had the gall to pat Neal on the shoulder and smile at him. It was as if Emma's pain and suffering meant nothing to them. A dull ache settled in Regina's chest. It felt old, buried. _Mother_. She shook that away and went back to focusing on dinner.

"Do you guys seriously have no clue how bad prison is? Actual fucking prison. Not some juvy center. Not a county jail. Fucking prison. I was seventeen, pregnant, and in prison for watches he stole. And not only does it sound like you want me to forgive and forget, but almost like I should thank him. Like he did me a fucking favor!" Now, Emma was yelling and she had a right to that anger, but maybe their son did not need to hear all of this.

"Dinner's ready!" It was a lie, but Regina could sense Emma's distress in her bones. Emma deserved better.

"In a minute," Neal had the nerve to respond.

Regina snarled, flexed her fingers, and a spark raced through her. The spark turned to acid, running down each and every nerve. Regina could no longer ignore the pain. She screamed and dropped to her knees, bruising them on the kitchen tile. It was like her arm had been flayed and then the muscle stripped from the bone with a cheese grater. The world faded for a long moment, but when things came back into focus, Emma and Henry were by her side.

"Mom, are you okay?" Henry asked.

"What happened? Did you get burned?" Emma asked.

Regina blinked and noticed Snow and David watching from the kitchen opening. "Yes, I was burned." She did not want to lie, but she could not, would not let the couple know they just witnessed her bonds in action.

"Maybe you should go sit down," Henry said.

"No, I can serve. I'm fine," Regina replied.

Henry must have understood how important this was because he did not argue. Emma and Henry helped her to her feet. As she stood on her own, Neal glowered at her, as if she had taken something from him. The nerve when he was trying to steal what was hers! _And what is that?_ The question made her mind pause. _My son, of course_. That felt like a lie.

Everyone went to sit at the table and Regina served, food and drinks. The room was silent and heavy. No one moved, even as Regina placed food in front of them. The smell wafted around them, taking over any and all spaces. Stomachs grumbled and Regina squared her shoulders, proud of what she had accomplished on such short notice. Yes, she was a slave, but she could take care of Emma better than anyone else at this damn table. She stood off to the side, behind Emma, once everything was in place. _It's strange I'm actually good at this, as if I was meant to be a servant_. _Or maybe meant to serve her_.

Emma's eyes fell to her plate and glistened as she took in the meal. "Oh, wow."

Henry looked at her. "What?"

Emma chuckled a bit and ran her hand through her hair. "Steak tips." She turned to Regina and grinned. "You made steak tips."

Regina gave her a half-smile, but said nothing. The steak tips, green beans, roasted potatoes, and biscuits would help Emma make it through dinner. The healthy helping of wine she poured Emma would help.

"What's the deal with steak tips?" Henry asked.

"Probably from when we had them, right?" Neal gave Emma a lopsided grin that girls probably swooned over. Well, Emma was not a girl anymore. She was a grown woman with wisdom and sense.

Emma shook her head. "No. The first meal I ever bought with my own money that I earned, not hustled or stole, but actually earned, I sat in a tiny restaurant in Boston and brought some steak tips, potatoes, and green beans. I had never felt so accomplished in my life, so proud. It was the best meal I had ever had."

"How does Mom know about that?" Henry asked, glancing at Regina.

Emma picked up her fork. "I told her about it. Back in Neverland. She was so freaked about you missing. Hell, I was freaked, too, so I just rambled and she listened. She listened." The awe in Emma's voice was clear.

"We were all worried," Snow said.

"Yeah, but we got you back," Neal said and he looked at Regina ask if daring her to say something. She surprised herself by staying silent. Emma said it all already and might not even know it.

"Yeah, our family will always find each other," David said and now Regina was surprised she did not throw up.

"Like Emma found me." Neal winked at Emma.

Emma rolled her eyes. "That was a favor for Gold. I would never actively seek you out and you didn't seem all that happy to be found in the first place."

That cut conversation for a while. Henry picked things up by talking about school. He was impressed by how normal things were after the assistant principal getting fired, along with half a dozen teachers leaving because the job was "beneath" them. Classes were a little rough. Some were no longer mainstream subjects, but there were classes and students were going. His grandparents hemmed and hawed on how they would solve that issue.

"We'll make sure you get enough teachers," Snow eventually said.

"Might want to check all the schools in Storybrooke, not just Henry's," Emma replied.

Snow kind of squeaked. "Of course." They all knew she had no plans to do such a thing until Emma suggested it. Snow probably did not even know how many schools were in the town beyond the one that she once worked for.

Dinner and dessert were finished and surprisingly no one was dead. Of course, if Emma could have killed with her eyes, Neal and her parents would not have stood a chance. They did not seem to notice. Regina began to clear the table while Henry took Neal and David up to see his room. Snow and Emma ended up back in the living room. Regina glanced in on them as she worked.

"Why don't you just give Neal a chance?" Snow asked.

"Because fuck Neal. What don't you get about him abandoning me to prison?" Emma huffed, arms folded across her chest. It looked like she wished she had on armor. "Of course it doesn't matter to you."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Snow could not truly be that oblivious.

"Nothing. Look, I'm not getting back with Neal. Fuck him in case you missed that part. Fuck him twice. I wouldn't spit on Neal if he was on fire, unless I had a mouthful of gasoline."

"Emma, if you forgive him, think of how sweet that love story would be. Two heroes reunite with their son."

"You think he's a hero? What the hell has he done to be a hero? You know what, I'm tired. I'm going to bed."

There was the telltale stomping up the stairs, signaling Emma's retreat. Snow did not take the hint to leave. Regina continued to clean up. Apparently, that was an invitation to talk to her.

"You're actually a good servant," Snow said, like it was a compliment.

"It's not that different from being a mother," Regina replied. She would leave Snow to ponder that.

The response kept Snow in thought until Henry brought David and Neal back downstairs. Snow was ready to leave by then. Regina opened the door to usher them out. As he left Neal locked eyes with her and smirked. He looked like he won something. Her muscles twitched followed by a hot sizzle on her nerves. She winced and his smirk grew. Oh, yeah, fuck him.

-8-8-8-8-

Next time: Regina tries to help Emma, so of course they both make things worse.

A/N: go check out my book, _Taming the Wind_, on Amazon under the name S.L. Kassidy. Thank you.


	9. Struck by a Bolt

I don't own these characters; Disney/ABC does.

9: Struck by a Bolt

Regina ignored the feeling of a rusty screw being jabbed on every nerve in her body as she glared at the closed door. Her magic demanded retribution against Neal and his pathetic attempt to steal her family. Her irons kept her magic in check, but not her rage. Who the hell did he think he was, acting like he was entitled to Emma and Henry?

Henry sighed. "Well, that could've gone worse, right?" He gave her an awkward smile.

"No one died, so, yes," Regina replied. Of course, if she had her way, at least one person would have died. _I wonder how Rumple would feel if he knew his damned bonds saved his accursed son's life. I'm sure he'd giggle to know the misery he's left in his wake_.

"You think Emma is ever going to forgive my dad?"

The term of endearment "dad" hit Regina hard in the gut to the point where it was a struggle to stay on her feet, so she could imagine how Emma felt to hear it. Emma had been with Henry for a year, involved in his schemes, encouraging him, supporting him, being there for him, and broke a Curse with the power of her love for him. Yet, She was still "Emma." Neal had been around for a couple of weeks and done absolutely nothing, but he was "Dad." _He needs to understand how this comes across, how all of this comes across_.

Part of Regina wanted to let this all go by, as protection for and from Henry. She did not want to risk him being upset with her, as he could cast her aside and accuse her of things. She did not want to trouble his world, but it was necessary. He was hurting Emma with this and Regina knew he would regret it once he was aware. _I can't spoil him_. He loved Emma. He needed to understand his words and actions had power with her.

Regina sighed and looked Henry in the eye. She wanted to reach out and touch him, but if her chains touched him, he would pull away. "Henry, you need to understand Neal hurt Emma a great deal and no one seems willing to acknowledge her pain." Something she knew all too well. "Why should she forgive him when everyone else has already decided her pain doesn't matter?"

He shook his head. "No one decided that."

Regina arched an eyebrow. "Oh, really? Isn't the idea of saying Emma should just forgive him a dismissal of her pain? Trying to force him into her life, isn't that a dismissal of her pain?"

He shook his head even faster. "We didn't mean it that way."

"No, because no one considered Emma's feelings at all here. Your grandparents have silly romantic notions, thinking every fairy tale is like their own. You, on the other hand, are hand over heels with the notion of having a father and at the moment, only your thoughts matter."

Henry winced and gave the back of his neck a sheepish rub. "That sounds pretty selfish."

Regina pressed on, even though she did not want to hurt his feelings, but this was serious. He could not run over everyone's emotions for the sake of his own and then pretend he was right. She had done that and been labeled a villain. She did not want that for him.

Henry's shoulders dropped before she could say anything. "I've done this before, haven't I?"

She twisted her mouth up a little. "Done this before?"

His eyes watered a bit and he wiped his face with the back of his hand. "With you, with Emma. I just assumed you should be one way and did whatever without thinking about you. I hurt you."

Hurt did not begin to cover what he had done to her. He had used a scorched Earth policy on her soul. But, it seemed to burn away parts of her that needed to go. She would never say she was all right, but she was better for it. There was no reason for him to regret it.

"It's all right, Henry. You did the right thing," Regina said. It was the truth.

His eyes searched the floor for a moment before he looked at her again. "Maybe, but I did it the wrong way and now look at you." He motioned to her with both hands. "You're wearing freaking shackles and you're like Emma's valet or whatever."

Regina arched an eyebrow. "A valet?"

"You're totally the Alfred around here."

Regina held in a laugh and shook her head. _Was that a compliment or an insult?_ "I'm not the best case. I don't mind this. The Curse needed to be broken. I was wrong." She was wrong on many things, which was why this existence was best and she did not mind.

He put his hands out. "But, I still hurt your feelings. And now I'm hurting Emma's feelings. Am I wrong for wanting to know him?" He turned away as his chin trembled.

"Hey." Regina carefully caressed his cheek, making sure to keep her chain away from his face. He met her eyes with a watery gaze and she gave him a little smile. "You're not wrong, but maybe there's another way to go about things. Let's start with honesty instead of sneaking around. You should know better than that by now."

His shoulders dropped. "You're right, but I didn't want her to be mad and I didn't want you guys to tell me know. I mean, I wanna get to know him, but I don't wanna hurt either of you."

She gave his cheek another stroke, ignoring the sheer delight in her blood from being able to touch him. "You can talk to Emma. You know you can talk to her and she'd appreciate you talking to her. Talk to Emma about Neal and tell her how you feel without telling her how she should feel. And listen to her responses, not because you want to say something back, but because you want to hear where she's coming from and because you care about her."

Henry nodded with his brand of determination. "That sounds good." He glanced up the stairs. "But, not tonight."

"Wise decision." Hopefully, he would make more of those as he grew up.

He turned his attention to around the downstairs areas. "You need any help cleaning up down here?"

Dropping her hand, she looked around. Guests had left worse messes in her life. "No, I can handle this. You go think how you can appropriately get to know Neal and what you plan to say to Emma."

"Okay. Good night, Mom." And then he hugged her.

Regina's breath hitched and her body tensed briefly. Her heart felt like it might explode. To hug her so freely, it made her think of when he was little and adored her. She hoped it never ended and she hoped he adored her once again some day.

She relaxed under his hold and embraced him back. She inhaled his precious scent and felt taken back in time. Henry was everything to be sure, but there was a time when she was his everything, when their little family was everything. She wanted that again. When Henry pulled away, the feeling did not fade.

"Love you, Mom. Goodnight."

"I love you as well."

Once Regina was alone, she finished cleaning and then retired upstairs. She expected to find Emma sleep, but instead she was working out. The sight of her body glistening with sweat and the short grunts from doing push-ups gave Regina pause to the point where she stopped breathing.

In all of the chaos, Regina forgot how defined Emma's muscles had become in Neverland. She had been able to avoid the distraction there, but now it was impossible to miss. Not with that tight sports bra and short-shorts. Since when did Emma own skimpy shorts? She blew out a breath and shook her head to get her mind back in order.

"Well, you ruined your earlier bath," Regina said. That was snarky enough for her, right? Kept things normal between them, right?

Emma groaned as she pushed her body up. "I didn't take one. I just worked out more." And down she went again and back up again.

Regina forced her face to appear stern as she folded her arms across her chest. "And that's relaxing?"

Up and down. Up and down. It was a good rhythm. "It's something to do."

Regina's heart rate spiked and shook her head again, hoping it would help her keep it together. "You need to unwind."

"What do you think I'm doing?"

"This isn't relaxing. You're just redirecting your frustration, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. I'm sure it keeps you from punching a wall."

"It does now," Emma said in a grumble.

Regina could picture a young Emma punching a wall and regretting it. "Yes, but again, this isn't helping you unwind. You need to relax."

"And how do you suggest I do that?"

"I could give you a massage." The words were out of Regina's mouth before she had time to think. _Are you out of your ever loving mind?_ _Why the hell did you say that?_ It was a desire to feel Emma, a desire she had been successfully ignoring for a while now. And if Emma turned her down, she would continue succeeding at. _Of course, I could've gone on ignoring it if she wasn't in here acting like she's training for a prize fight_.

With a grunt, Emma climbed to her feet with her mouth twisted to the side. "You know how to give a massage?"

No. "I know the logistics of it. I've never given one."

"Lemme guess, you read a book during the Curse?"

Regina scoffed. "You mock, but my reading has come in handy in a variety of moments in our lives." Her love of reading was one of the many things she shared with Emma under the bright Neverland moon.

There were a few quiet seconds. "Do we even have massage oil?"

Lightning jolted down Regina's nerves and settled hot in her stomach. "I have a number of different oils that would be suitable." _Try not to sound too eager_.

Emma arched an eyebrow. "You do? Where?"

"The bathroom." She pointed behind her. She used the main bathroom with Henry. _Good thing she didn't ask why I have these_. The oils were leftovers from potions.

"Uh, okay."

Regina nodded. "Right back."

She consciously took slow steps to avoid making an ass out of herself. She did not want to rouse suspicion either. It took her much longer than necessary to make it to the bathroom. She took breath as she stared at herself in the cabinet mirror. It felt good to look in a mirror and not see Sidney. It did not feel good to realize she was about to put her hands on Emma and she might not be able to control her growing lust.

_Why am I suddenly like this? _She had noticed Emma was attractive from the beginning, but had only entertained ideas of dominating her, controlling her like she had past conquests. Those fantasies had changed at some point, but not by much. She did not know many ways to be with someone, after all. But, the notion of putting her hands on Emma and not making it hurt or making it pleasurable for both of them had replaced thoughts of say, whipping Emma and then having her way with Emma.

She never knew what to make of those thoughts and put them in a box. She would never be able to act on those with her son's other mother. Then, Emma came back for her in the mine and they shared so much in Neverland. It added so many layers of intimacy to an already burdensome attractive that she could hardly measure. It made her want things, things she had never wanted before. And her heart raced at the idea of being able to put her hands on Emma, serve Emma, and make her feel good.

"Calm down. This means nothing. She's stressed and you're her servant. It's your duty to make her feel better and nothing more." She glanced away for a moment and then looked back, holding up her finger. "You know what I mean. Don't think about it. Don't overstep. Don't do the wrong thing." She nodded, having it in her head… or so she hoped. She studied her oils and grabbed the one with the strongest lavender scent. The aroma itself should help relax Emma.

When Regina returned to the room, She had to pause again. Emma was laid out on the bed topless. She was in a prone position, chest pressed into a towel she placed underneath herself, so Regina did not see anything. She forgot how comfortable Emma was with her body, but this was the same woman who answered the door in her underwear without inquiring who was there. She released a breath she had not been aware she was holding.

"Like this is good, right?" Emma asked. She rested her chin on her forearms as she glanced at Regina. She then looked behind her, like she was checking on herself.

"Perfect, but how do you want me?" The way Emma was position, there was really only one way for the massage to happen and Regina was not opposed it at all.

"Oh." Emma poked her head up and looked around. "I guess you can straddle my waist. You don't look like you weigh much, so you won't hurt me."

Regina gulped, but nodded. She moved without sound as she made her way to the bed and Emma. _Calm down and do your duty. Show her you can offer more than Neal. Wait, what?_ It was time to stop thinking and act.

Regina climbed onto the bed and straddled Emma, careful not to rest her weight on Emma, despite the fact that Emma thinking she was weightless. As she made herself comfortable, her eyes fell on Emma's back. Like her arms, there were lines of muscles and it did nothing to help Regina forget her attraction. Her heart sped up and she had to take a few low breaths to keep it together. _Why the hell did I think this was a good idea?_

"Something wrong?" Emma asked.

"No, no, no. I'm just mentally going through what I've read," Regina answered.

"Are you sure you want to do this?"

"You need to relax. I can help. Just give me a moment, please."

Emma shrugged her shoulders. Regina blinked to get her mind off of the pure, raw strength she saw and got started. She put oil on her hands and kneaded Emma's shoulders. Emma moaned and a shot of confidence bolted through Regina.

"That feels good. Harder," Emma said.

The command hit Regina in a way she did not expect, but she wanted nothing more than to fulfill it. She wanted to make Emma feel good and help Emma forget her pain. For a long while, that was what happened. The room was quiet beyond Emma's groans and sighs.

"It's not just about sending me to jail, you know?" Emma said.

Regina was not surprised Emma wanted to talk, but she was at the same time. Yes, they did this all the time in Neverland, but she thought it was just a Neverland thing. It was a thing when they were under stress, in despair. It would be nice to continue, to help unburden each other. She had never realized how weighed down she was until she shared with Emma.

"Although that's more than enough," Regina replied.

Emma blew out a breath. "It is, but it's beyond that and nobody gets it. It's the life he cost me."

"The chance to be Henry's mother." Because Henry was everything.

"Exactly! Because he wasn't there, I gave Henry up. I trusted a system I knew was fucked up over my ability to be a single parent because I knew I was fucked up, but he made me believe as a team we could've made. And now he gets to come in and act like everything's fine?" Emma sniffled.

"It's not fine."

"No, it's not! Don't they understand I wanted him? I wanted my baby, Regina. I wanted to be a mom. I would've showed every stupid foster mother I had how it was done. But, I couldn't do it alone. I mean, how could I? I could barely take care of me alone."

"You're not alone now."

"Nope." Emma sighed and turned a little to smile at Regina. "I've got you."

Regina paused, not expecting that. Emma had her parents, the town, and two morons lusting after her. But, she did not put stock in that. She put her faith in Regina. _Why does she do this? _No, Emma did not back Regina every time, but she did it more than most people. It made Regina's chest tight.

"For what it's worth, I know how you feel," Regina said. Sometimes, all she and Emma wanted for their trouble was empathy. So far, it seemed they were the only ones who offered it to each other, not just now, but in general.

"What do you mean?"

"I didn't think I'd be able to protect my children from my mother on my own, so I decided against having children. I took a potion to ensure I'd never conceive."

"Wow. You're like super-mom, though."

Regina chuckled. "I'm glad you think so, but we both know Henry is proof I shouldn't have had a child on my own."

"Yeah, you messed up with him, but you did good things with him, too."

"Yes, but I think one of the reasons I was confident in having Henry was because I controlled the town and my mother was dead as far as I knew. There was nothing to fear." Despite no outside problems, Regina had still managed to harm Henry. There was no getting around that.

"Yeah, but you still did a good job with him. Now, you know I don't condone the Curse and making him think he's nuts, but you did other good stuff with him. I don't think anyone's the perfect parent."

"I agree with you. I love my father with all my heart and I think he was a good man, but not the best parent."

Emma was silent for a long moment. "So, how come no one else gets this?"

"They're idiots." Regina did not have another explanation.

Emma made a noise, but did not say anything. Upon closer inspection, Emma was asleep. Regina would have felt proud that she gave a massage good enough to put Emma to sleep, but it was hard to do as she studied Emma's face. Even in her sleep, her face was pained and twisted. How could the world keep doing things like this to her?

-8-8-8-8-

Emma woke up in the middle of the night, surrounded by darkness, but feeling light. Her back usually felt like she had the weight of the world on her shoulders. For the moment, she could breathe and that was important. She glanced at the reason for it all.

Regina was tucked into her cot. She looked like a little, tiny lump, which Emma wanted to cuddle. She wanted to take Regina in her arms and protect her from the world. Regina would probably say that was just in her nature and call her an idiot. She did not think it was. Yes, she liked to help. Yes, she liked to be a good person. Regina was the only person beyond Henry she had the desire to personally protect. Beyond Henry, Regina was probably the only person Emma knew she would literally jump in front of bullets for.

Shaking that thought away, Emma went to take a shower, washing off the massage oil. It smelled so good she hated to scrub it away, but she did not want her pajamas sticking to her. She dressed, brushed her teeth, and collapsed back in the bed. She gave Regina one more glance. It was nice to know her pain mattered to someone. The thought made it easy to fall asleep.

When Emma woke up next, it was to warm sunlight in the room and the smell of breakfast hanging in the air. _I could get used to this_. She took her time getting dressed, feeling no pressure in one aspect of life. Once she was dressed, she made her way downstairs and Regina greeted her with a steaming cup of coffee.

Emma hummed as she sipped the coffee. "This tastes so good. You sure you're not using magic to make the coffee?"

"Just little ol' me," Regina replied.

"The magic might be in the waffles," Henry said.

At the mention of waffles, Emma noticed her plate of breakfast. There were three giant, fluffy waffles, covered in syrup and strawberries and bananas. There were two fried eggs and several sausage pieces next to the waffles. It was glorious. She saddled up to the plate and jumped right in. This was the best way to start the day.

"How do you make everything so good?" Emma moaned around a mouthful of buttery waffles.

"Practice," Regina replied, wiping down the kitchen counters.

"It's so amazing." Emma turned to Henry. "You're lucky to have gotten to eat like this your whole life. You don't want to know how many foster homes I've been in where people put a lock on the fridge."

Henry's eyes went wide. "A lock on the fridge?"

"To make sure the kids couldn't get in it and eat everything."

"People do that?" Henry's mouth fell open. Thankfully, it was empty.

Emma only nodded and Henry blew out a breath. He went back to eating. They ended up having seconds.

When breakfast was done, goodbyes were said to Regina and Emma and Henry left together. They barely made it two steps out of the door before Henry grabbed Emma by the hand. She turned and looked at him.

"I'm sorry about the thing with my father. I want to know him, but I don't want to hurt you or disrespect you," Henry said.

Emma's heart thumped in her chest. She was happy Henry said those things, but she still did not want him to be around Neal. But, she nodded. "I understand wanting to know your birth parents, believe me, I do. But, I don't trust Neal. I don't trust him to take care of you if you're with him. I don't trust him to look out for you, but I can't stand to be around him, so I can't be there to protect you."

She did not want to rob Henry of something she genuinely understood. But, she did not want him to end up disillusioned as she had. Unfortunately, Neal could only disappoint. It was in his nature.

Henry smiled at her. "Well, what if I was with Grams or Gramps?"

Emma held in a scoff. She trusted them almost as much as Neal with the bullshit they pulled last night. "We'll figure something out. Maybe you could hang out with him at _Granny's_. She'd keep an eye on you for me." Even though Granny was all for Regina being punished, she did not blindly follow the insane things the Royal Council came up with, so Emma trusted her to watch Henry and make sure Neal did not do anything screwy.

He smiled even more and Emma knew she did right by him. He deserved to know his father, even if Neal was a jerk. Maybe he would do right by Henry. It could happen, right? _Yeah, and fairy tales could be real, so I guess anything's possible_. And she and Henry seemed all right again.

Emma went to work feeling pretty good about herself. The day started out well and continued on as Ruby reported for duty. Ruby high-fived her and she felt even better. That was a step in the right direction, but there would need to be more than the two of them. They had files of other candidates to go through, but were interrupted by Hook.

"Hello, love. Just coming by to help," Hook said as he brought the mood down in the station with his presence.

"I have Ruby. I don't need your help." Emma motioned to Ruby, who grinned and waved.

Hook smirked. "I don't think Ruby can help in the way I can."

"I dunno. I'm sure I have a strap-on that puts you to shame," Ruby replied.

Emma guffawed and Hook frowned. He obviously had no idea what she meant, but understood there was an insult there. Emma should have expected him. He had to know about her "family" dinner with Neal, as Ruby knew, so Snow was probably telling the world. Now, Hook had it in his head that he had to top that. With luck, he would go away when she did not give him the attention he craved. Of course that did not work and then they got a phone call.

"Sword fight in progress," Emma said, rushing out of her seat. Ruby was right behind her. Unfortunately, so was Hook.

Hook jumped into the back of the squad car and Emma did not have time to argue with him to get out. They sped to the call and sure enough there was a sword fight with big swords. She was about to move on the situation, but Hook grabbed her hand. She yanked away from him.

"Don't get in my way," she said, pointing at him.

"I don't want you to get hurt," Hook said.

She ignored him and halted the sword fight with a single gunshot in the air. The two combatants halted just long enough for her to stand in between them. They eyed her like she was in the wrong. She barely got to find out what the dispute was about, a dog doing his business on the wrong lawn, and another call came in. She confiscated the swords and they were off again and that was the day. All day. Storybrooke stupidity and Hook. If Ruby had not been there to deflect, Emma would have killed him.

"Is it always this annoying? And smelly? I know there's no more trash pickup, but some places seem worse than others. Like what is that about?" Ruby asked as they called it a day not too far from _Granny's_.

Emma laughed. "This actually was one of my better days thanks to you." She was exhausted, but it was still better than before.

"But, worst days thanks to Hook?" She glanced over Emma's shoulder where Hook was undoubtedly standing a couple of feet away.

Emma groaned. "I'll get rid of him soon enough. You helped me keep order better than I was able to do by myself. Before I was basically running around like a chicken with my head cut off. I couldn't really do anything."

Ruby pulled her mouth to the side. "I don't feel like we did much. I can't believe so many people are fighting each other and trying to claim people's property based on status. The worst is what the hell they're doing with those kids. I can't believe we had to fucking relocate kids."

Emma rubbed the back of her neck. "That was a new one." And it hurt. There were a couple of families who decided they did not want their Cursed kids anymore and kicked them out of their homes. Thankfully, there were people taking in kids. While this was the first time Emma had to deal with it, apparently it had happened several times while she was gone in Neverland and that was why there was a place to take the children.

Ruby scowled. "People are kinda garbage when under stress, huh?"

"Yeah, don't I know it?" It felt like her entire life was about experiencing how garbage people could be and that had not changed since coming to Storybrooke. It churned her up inside. Why were people so horrible all the time? "Look, let's not think about it anymore. We did the best we could in keeping order. I consider it a good day when no one died."

Ruby nodded. "That idiot nymph almost came close. She's lucky I was wearing this badge or I'd have slapped her. God, you have no idea how much I appreciate you not running out on us having to deal with this crap on your own."

"You think it'll get better?" Emma did not want this all to be in vain. There needed to be a light at the end of this tunnel and it needed to not be a train. She felt rundown enough already, held together by spit, glue, and a stubborn determination to do what she needed.

Ruby gave her a pretty promising smile. "I think so. This is an abrupt change. I'm sure it'll calm down once everyone realizes this is what it is. We're here."

Emma wished the smile made her feel better. "Then why did you back the Council?"

Ruby shrugged. "We need people in charge, Emma. Those people know how to be in charge."

"Altogether, though?" It seemed like a bad excuse, but Emma did not have the energy to call Ruby on it. She needed Ruby.

Ruby blew out a breath. "Maybe it's a learning process for us all. I dunno. I just know I don't want to be in charge. But, I also want to be able to go to the supermarket and not worry about if the shelves got restocked or if somebody's working the register today. And I don't want you to lose your mind while we wait for everyone to settle down."

"Thanks."

Ruby put her hand on Emma's shoulder. "Don't thank me. I'm here for you, even if I side with your mom on some things. I'm here for you in any way you need me, just like I try to be there for her when she needs me."

"Thanks." It was enough for Emma. She pulled Ruby into a tight hug. She really appreciated the support. It felt like it filled broken spaces in her, but she knew it would not last. Being out and about in Storybrooke broke her and emptied her every day she stepped outside.

They parted ways and Emma drove off before Hook could get back into the car. It was a temporary solution, but it worked for now. Her brain was tense thanks to him and it needed immediate relief.

Once home, Regina greeted her with a beer, some homemade cookies, and she collapsed on the couch. Regina was a godsend at the moment. It was nice to come home and unwind. Storybrooke was an outside issue now, but her body did not agree. With luck, the beer and the cookies would ease the tension.

Henry was there, doing homework on the coffee table. At least school was normal. Well, for some kids. There were other kids out there dealing with the idea of parents not wanting them, of being thrown out of their homes, or being left to wander dirty streets where literally anything could happen right now.

"You okay?" Henry asked. At least he was home, safe, and loved.

"Yeah, why?" Emma replied.

"Your face." He circled his own face with his index finger. "You look like you're one straw away."

Emma blew out a breath, but it felt like it was trapped in her chest, rattling through her bones. "I'm keeping it together. It's just a lot. Nonstop calls today and Hook refused to leave me alone. At one point I thought I ditched him and then he showed up at my next crime scene." She wanted to complain more, but Henry was her son, not her friend, and he was only eleven.

Henry sneered. "Hook really likes you? I thought he was just being sleazy."

"I think it's both now. Or he can't take rejection. I dunno. He's annoying and getting in the way." _I shouldn't have kissed him back in Neverland!_ She did not know one mistake would haunt her like this. _How could I not know that?_ Her mistakes always had long and loud echoes.

"So, you were out on calls all day?"

"Pretty much. Society is breaking down. A bunch of calls are always people harassing 'bad guys' who are just trying to live life. So annoying. Would it kill these people to mind their business?"

Henry pursed his lips. "Is the Royal Council doing anything about that? We lost a few good teachers because they were 'bad guys.'"

"I don't think they're doing anything at all. Last time I saw them, hoping to get a bigger budget to hire at least three duties, they argued with each other over territory or something and got nothing except a headache for my troubles. Thank God for Ruby. Without her, I'd be screwed."

"I'm happy you have her, too, then."

"Is school good?" Emma wanted things to be all right for him.

Henry nodded and then went back to his homework. Emma finished her beer and half the cookies, but did not feel that much better. There was just so much going on, so much falling apart, and the so-called town leaders were a huge part of that, including her parents. Parents who did not understand her or want her from what she could tell. What was she supposed to do with that? Regina brought her another beer as soon as she was done. Emma shook her head.

"I need way more than beer, a bath, or massage at this point," Emma said. She needed to turn off her thoughts.

"What about some homemade pie and ice cream?"

Pie was better than cookies, so Emma was intrigued. "You made pie?"

"I did."

"Well, I don't think it'll help, but we better try just to be sure. You know, for science." Emma grinned and wiggled her eyebrows.

Regina chuckled and moved to make that happen. The dessert was good, but did not change how Emma felt. She carried that weight all the way to bed with her. She stared at the ceiling, feeling worse and worse as she thought about how bad things were for the town. She felt useless. She was supposed to help people and she could hardly do anything. Maybe doing a good deed would sort her out enough to sleep.

"Regina, you asleep?" Emma asked.

"I am not."

"You wanna come get in the bed? It's more comfortable than the cot." And maybe it would be nice to sleep next to someone who asked nothing of her.

A few seconds ticked by. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah, totally. Come get in the bed."

Regina stood up and stepped away from the cot. Emma's heart sped up for some reason she refused to think about. Regina did not move closer, but grabbed the hem of her long, linen tunic. Emma's mouth went dry while another area gained moisture. For a moment, her mind went blank and then it reset as the shirt hit the floor.

"What the hell are you doing?" Emma could not control the volume of her voice or the tone, so she basically roared at Regina.

Regina tilted her head a little. "You told me to come to bed and I'm a servant."

"That's bullshit! You know I didn't mean it like that!" _I didn't mean that, right?_ She had fantasies like this, but she could not have meant it that way. "You're just as bad as everyone else, fucking with my head! That's what this slave shit was about, wasn't it? Not only do you get to be close to Henry, but you get to fuck with me?" Emma knew she was screaming, but could not stop. She also could not stop the tears pouring down her face.

Outside, Emma was vaguely aware of the sound of thunder as lightning flashed through the sky. The power lines buzzed, the lights flicked, and it went black just as a bolt of lightning shot through the window. Regina put her hands up, shrieked as the lightning connected with her irons, and collapsed in a smoking heap. Emma gasped and felt like her whole body was on pause. Did she just kill Regina with magic? Fuck.

-8-8-8-8-

Next time: is Regina dead?


	10. Heal Thy Self

I don't own these characters; Disney/ABC does.

10: Heal Thy Self

The room was bathed in black. There was no light outside either. Car alarms whined, but they sounded off in the distance to Emma. She had other things to worry about than what the hell was going on outside.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck," Emma said as she rushed Regina's possibly dead body. Did she kill Regina? "Fuck!" Her heart exploded in her chest. She was certain of that and the only reason she was not dead was because she had to make sure Regina was not dead. "Fuck!" She crouched over Regina's form, smelling the ozone and smoke wafting from her body. Emma pulled at her own hair as she tried to think of what she should do.

"Mom, Emma, is everything okay?" Henry's footsteps rushed down the hall. _Oh, this just gets better and better_.

"It's fine! Don't come in!" Emma replied as she almost tripped over herself to get up. She consciously stopped herself from charging the door, needing not to sound frantic, but quietly made her way there. She locked the door, hoping Henry did not hear it click or he would have even more questions. "Fuck, fuck, fuck." She went back to Regina's side and stared at her. It was hard to tell if Regina was breathing in the dark.

"What happened to the power? You think lightning struck a transformer? I was asleep and a big boom woke me up," Henry said, sounding like he was right at the door. _Don't try to come in. Please, don't try to come in!_

"Go back to bed, bud. I'm sure the power will be back on in the morning. I'll go check it out as soon as I get dressed."

"You sure you want? It'll probably be crazy out there."

_God, he's right_. She held in a groan. She would worry about that later, when she went to go check it out to make sure people were all right. Right now, she had to deal with a closer fuck up.

"Yeah, but it's my job. I don't want anybody to get hurt," Emma replied. _Oh, you mean like you hurt someone, idiot?_

"You're a good person, Emma. Goodnight."

Evidence of how wrong he was lie on her floor and Emma still had no idea how to make things better. "Goodnight. Don't sneak out."

"I won't." That was the truth and she did not need her superpower to confirm it. He understood how dangerous the town was now. He understood danger in general now.

She could hear Henry's footsteps fade down the hall again. That was one bullet dodged, but Regina was still down. Emma found herself panting as she settled next to Regina again and tried to think of what to do. _You should call someone for help, you stupid son of bitch! _The only problem with that was someone might arrive who would congratulate her on her handiwork. She did not need that in her life right now._ So, do something for fuck's sake!_

With her eyes adjusted to the dark a little more, she could see Regina was breathing, albeit shallow. That did nothing to stop her heart from racing. "Fuck!"

Taking a breath herself, Emma scrubbed her face with both hands. It helped calm her down. She gathered Regina in her arms, not sure what she would do next. Still, she needed to help Regina or get her to someone who would help. A shiver raced through her as she took a step toward the door and she realized her magic was healing Regina without her having to try.

Regina gasped and jolted up. Emma froze, body overloaded by too many emotions. Regina fell back against her, small coughs wracking her body. Emma dropped to the floor, leaning against the wall, as there was no way she could hold herself up at this point.

"I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!" Emma hugged Regina to her. Tears filled her eyes and she had never felt so happy in all her life. She had not killed Regina. Or maybe she had killed Regina and brought her back to life? Whatever! Regina was alive. _Thank god! _She sobbed and pressed Regina close. _Thank you, thank you, thank you!_

Regina groaned and her eyes fluttered open. Her eyes darted around the room. Emma waited, rocking them both. Without thinking, she kissed the top of Regina's head and stroked her hair.

"I am so sorry. I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry," Emma said like it was the only thing she knew how to say. What else could she say?

"Emma?" Regina sounded like she had rocks in her throat. Her eyes wandered the room, unfocused, and her body twitched in Emma's grip.

Emma held Regina closer, hoping it would get her to stop shivering. "I am so sorry." She did not mean to do it, but it happened. If she thought she felt bad now, she could not even fathom how she would feel when Regina realized Emma almost killed her. When Regina left her, she would understand that abandonment. _Oh, god, she's gonna leave me. What am I gonna do? What the hell am I gonna do?_

Regina's brow wrinkled as her eyes went to Emma's face. "Sorry for what?"

"I hit you with lightning!" _Holy shit! I struck Regina with lightning like I'm goddamn Zeus. I'm a fucking menace! _After she made sure Regina was fine and not going to die, Emma would have to find some place else to stay. There was no way in hell she could trust herself around Regina again. She would not subject Henry to a household where one parent hurt the other. It was bad enough that he had to look at his mother used as a slave for her. _Well, it's not like he really considers you his mother, anyway_. _You're just Emma. No one_. Yeah, it was time to leave. Definitely time to leave. Overdue in fact.

Regina groaned again and focused enough to look at Emma directly. She squinted, as if going through her memory for that moment. "Hit me with lightning? No." With a groan, Regina rubbed her forehead and closed her eyes for a long time. "No, I raged."

Emma blinked. She did not understand. "What?"

"I raged at your words. I wanted to unleash my wrath."

"Regina, I saw lightning I'm pretty sure I caused hit you. This is my fault." She would not let Regina take the blame, let her off the hook. No, this was it. She had crossed the line. Or maybe only just recognized she crossed the line. The line might be far away and she never realized it. _Well, you are keeping Regina as a slave and some of your thoughts about her are kinda worrisome_.

Regina rolled her neck and then her shoulders. "Yes, you made the lightning, but that's not what took me down. Your words hurt."

"Sorry." Tears continued to pour down Emma's face. _You're such a stupid ass. Regina's been one of the few things helping to make this hellish existence worth while and you hurt her. Fuck you_.

Regina shook her head and then put a hand to her temple, rubbing it in soft circles. Emma wanted to do that for her, but she had her hands full. Instead, she sniffled and touched her forehead to Regina's. She gave Regina another soft kiss to her brow.

"I'm so fucking sorry," she said through more sobs. She was not sure if she would ever stop crying.

"Don't be and don't cry. This wasn't your fault. I was going to lash out, but the irons." Regina's eyes fell to her wrists.

Emma touched a shackle with her thumb. "Your irons zapped you? But, I saw the lightning hit you." _I did this. She can't lie and say I didn't. I did this_.

"It did, but I was already going down. Without the irons, I was going to blow the roof off this place, literally."

Emma hummed and hiccuped as tears still leaked from her eyes. Was that true? It probably was considering who Regina was, but that did not make up for the fact that Emma has also lashed out, had almost killed Regina. She had taken her anger out on the person who deserved it the least right now, even if Regina was acting weird.

"We need to talk," Emma said with a sniffle as she wiped her face. Her tears finally stopped. Tears would not solve anything.

The house lights flashed for a moment before coming back on. She was thankful for that, not wanting to have to go outside and police the town during a power failure after this. She was so drained. Of course, she might not stay in town after this. She still felt like human trash.

Regina made a small noise. "Yes." She pressed her hand to Emma's chest. "Um… maybe you should put me down."

Emma nodded. "And maybe you should put on a shirt."

"Agreed."

Emma stood, only to set Regina down. Regina went to grab her sleep shirt. They then retreated to opposite ends of the room. For a long moment, silence reigned. Then, like two planets destined to crash into each other, they inched closer until they were next to the bed. Regina stood at the foot and Emma stood at the head. Emma opened her mouth.

Regina held up a finger. "Don't you dare start with another apology."

Emma closed her mouth. "Then, what do you want me to say?" She did not mean that. Yes, she was upset with Regina, but she would never want to hurt her, kill her.

"Let's start with why you ended up angry in the first place," Regina replied.

That was obvious. Emma picked at the pillowcase and frowned. "Why did you do that? You know damn well I wasn't calling you to the bed that way. I'd never do that to you." Not when she was vaguely aware of Regina's marriage. Not when she knew she had some kind of feelings for Regina and would not want to be rejected, would not want to ruin what they had. _What do we have? You're an idiot and you did ruin it. You almost killed her, stupid_.

Regina sighed. "I know you didn't, but I'm sure you don't mean to use me as a servant and sometimes you do. So, I thought maybe you meant it, but you didn't in the same way."

Emma yelped. "I do?" _Fuck, fuck, fuck_. _I'm clearly fucked up. Why would she want to stay with me? Oh, yeah, because Henry is everything and I have Henry_.

"I don't mind."

Emma shook her head in horror. "But, I do. I don't want you to be my slave, Regina."

"But, I am. And I want that. Hell, I might _need_ that."

Emma could not understand how someone needed to be a slave. That was madness. But, then again, she could not understand how she used someone, her son's mother, as a servant. That was madness. What was she doing? What was her life about?

"But, what does that have to do with what just happened?" Emma asked. She needed to make sense of things and then she could figure out what to do next, but she was certain her next move needed to be getting the hell out of town.

Regina scratched her forehead. "There's a lot, Emma. Maybe even more than I can explain, but I'll try."

"Please, because I feel like I'm going out of my damn mind." Of course, she would probably still feel that way after the explanation. She had been feeling like she was going to tear out of her skin since they got back. Maybe even before that. "Why did you do this? Why did you approach this thing this way?"

Regina took a breath. "I want to relax you, comfort you, which sex can do. I've also worked it up in my mind to be a good servant to you and if this was the Enchanted Forest, a good servant would know how to get you to forget your stress."

Emma nodded. "So, this was like your duty?" That hurt. Regina was not attracted to her and would only be intimate with her if it was a duty.

"That was part of it." Regina took another deep breath and locked eyes with Emma. The look was so intense, Emma wanted to take a step back, but remained rooted to the floor. "Do you know why I agreed to be your servant?"

"Because you want to be close to Henry." Duh.

Regina rubbed her palms together. "And you. I wanted to be close to you and I did this crazy thing. I want you to see I'm a better choice than Hook or Neal. I want to be with you. I want to be with you and Henry. I want… I want us to be a family."

Emma's mind went blank for a long moment, only hearing Regina's words in an echo. _I want us to be a family_. In all of this madness, that was all Emma wanted, all she was trying to hold onto. It was why she was still in this godforsaken town for crying out loud. But, Regina wanted a family with her? _And I almost destroyed that, destroyed her_.

That sounded nice, but this was beyond crazy. "So, you agreed to be my servant to be with me?" _I'm not worth it. I'm not worth anything_.

Regina chuckled a little. "You say that like it's somehow crazier than when you thought I did this to be close to Henry."

"Because it is!" Emma threw out her hands. "You went through all of this for me?" That was beyond crazy. She was not worth it. Her own parents did not want to be around her. Her own son did not want her. No one wanted her. Ever. Why the fuck would Regina do all of this to be with her?

Regina gave her an awkward half-smile. "To be fair, I didn't realize it to this extent until Neal was here."

"Neal is just the gift that keeps on giving, huh?" Emma rolled her eyes. She was sick of that man, even if he made Regina realize she had feelings for Emma.

"In this sense, yes. When he left, it clicked for me. I hate him, not because he's Henry's father, but because he thinks he's entitled to you. I hate him because he wants you and I fear he might have you."

Emma scoffed, throwing her head to the side. "Fat chance. I can't stand him and I'm not some stupid sixteen year old again. I told Henry he could see him at _Granny's_ and I'll ask Granny to watch him because I can't stomach the sight of Neal."

"Good to know, but all of that was on my mind and I know how you want to please your parents. Your mother wants you to be with him."

"Yeah, one of the many things we've gonna disagree on." Emma was not sure what she was going to do about her parents. "But, back to the matter at hand, what did this have to do with what happened?"

Regina shrugged. "I saw an opportunity when you called me to the bed. I could show you why I was the better choice in the sense you didn't need to bring anyone else into the household."

Okay, that was crazy, but still a little flattering. Regina was willing to go through extremes for her. No one had ever done that. Most people threw her away the second it suited them, or sometimes just for the hell of it. Regina went through crazy lengths to try to stay close to her. It should not make her feel better about herself, but she stood up a little taller anyway.

"So, you're attracted to me," Emma said. The notion made her heart flutter, even though it sounded insane. _What if she's just playing you again? No one wants you_. _Yeah, you're a pretty face, but no one wants you with any real meaning_.

"Oh, Emma." Regina stepped closer to Emma, close enough to touch her. She ran her index finger along Emma's hand. "I've been attracted to you."

Emma blinked. "Since when?"

Regina looked at the ceiling for a moment, searching her memory. She shook her head and her eyes went back to Emma's face. "Sexually, it's hard to pinpoint, but emotionally, it built from when you pulled me from the fire and saved Henry from the mine, but was cemented when you came back for me with the failsafe. Why do you think I followed you in Neverland?"

"Guess that makes sense." Emma blew out a breath. Yeah, in Neverland she had put herself in charge, but there was no real reason for Regina to follow her. In fact, Regina seemed to disagree with many of her decisions, but stayed by her side until it seemed like she picked Neal over Henry. She ran her hand through her hair and her eyes fell to the floor. "Now it double sucks that I went after Neal. Makes it look like I picked him over both you and Henry."

Regina gave her a sorrowful smile, eyes glistening a little. "I understand why you went after him, but I still don't agree."

Emma grunted. That was more than she expected of Regina. Hell, all of this was more than she expected of Regina. Yes, she knew there was serious sexual tension between them, but she never expected Regina to have feelings for her. _Shit_.

Yes, Emma knew she was attracted to Regina physically. But, was it more than that? Was that why she put up with so much from Regina? Apparently, it was why Regina put up with so much from her. Hell, Regina having feelings for her might even explain why she was still alive. Regina did not have it in her to kill Emma. What did any of this mean?

"Are you going to say something?" Regina asked after a long stretch of silence.

Shaking her head, Emma blinked as she came out of her head. "Sorry. I was trying to process what you said. I've always thought you were gorgeous and like sex on heels. I mean, from the moment I first saw you. Pretty sure my first thought was 'damn, she's hot' when you opened the door. But, yeah, I've grown really attached to you. I guess I never realized how attached or why that was."

Regina cocked an eyebrow. "And?"

"And lately, coming home to you and Henry has been the best. It's like really coming home. You're like my safe place from outside crazy and that's why I took this so hard. I thought… I was scared it was all fake." That shook her to her core. She needed this or she was nothing. And, for a moment, she felt like it was confirmed she was nothing, so she struck out at the one person she wanted to actually protect all the time.

"Emma…" Regina said her name like it was sacred.

There were tears again, but she managed to keep them in. "I was so scared and I couldn't control myself." She wiped her eyes. "What did wasn't right and this isn't an excuse. I just didn't want this to be a lie. I was terrified. This can't be a lie."

"No, it's not. It's just me being awkward." Regina gave her a painful smile.

Emma chuckled. "I'm used to being the awkward one out of us."

Sighing, Regina ran her hand through her hair. "I blame the stress. I'm usually a better seductress."

"I can imagine. And I'd like to experience it at some point." So, maybe she did not need to leave town. She needed to learn to talk things out with Regina.

Regina smiled. "I'll do my best to show you if you really want."

"I would, but I want you to know that you, this, it's so much more than just seducing me into bed." Emma motioned to the space between them. "You're home, Regina. You and Henry are home for me. That means a lot. Hell, that's everything."

"Believe me, I know."

Oh. It never occurred to Emma that Regina never really had a home or family either. But, she was flooded with conversations during their time in Neverland and remembered that was the real connection between them. It was there she was able to realize they were not so different in the fact that life had dealt them crappy hands and they made the most of it. Of course, Regina made the most of it in the sense that she wanted to win by any means necessary and Emma made the most of it as she just wanted to survive the next day. Still, they were not so different, two sides of the same coin in a sense. They both knew how precious this was and they understood each other's pain. Regina was there for her more than her own parents.

"I think… I think that's why I still lash out at you so much," Emma said.

Regina's brow winked. "What do you mean?"

"Because I know you're going to be here. You act like you're not, but I can feel you are. You know what I need and you're willing to be here for me, even if you're being a bitch about it. I can scream and throw a tantrum and… strike you with lightning apparently and you're still here."

There was a slow nod. "I think it's safe to say we both feel that way. I knew I could do this with you, _to_ you, and you'd accept me. Yes, you'd be angry and you'd make me angry, but at the end of the day, you'd accept it. Which you did."

"Partially because I'm crazy, though. This place made me crazy." Emma held her index finger up and spun it around.

"To be fair, I'm also crazy. I've been crazy for a while, though. I think… I think you help me be sane, though. You help me remember to be human in a way even Henry hasn't been able to."

"Maybe because you're more than just a mother and you have to figure that out."

Regina nodded. "I suppose I never thought of that, which is one of the reasons why it took me so long to figure out how I felt about you. It was hard to accept that I did this to be close to you as well as Henry."

That was a lot, but Emma felt like she could deal with it. "I'm glad we got that out in the open. What now?" There had to be a way to move forward from this. Leaving town was still an option. _Oh, maybe we should talk about this "lashing out" thing. I mean, yeah, you hurt the ones you love, but we gotta stop hurting each other_.

"I'm not sure. I've never been in this situation. I've never felt this way before. We can carry on as we are."

Emma reared back, but grabbed both of Regina's hands and held them tightly with her own. "What? No. You're a servant. I don't want that."

"I don't mind being your servant."

"I mind."

Regina tilted her head. "Do you?"

"Yes! I mean, okay, maybe I ordered you around a bit without realizing it, but that doesn't mean I condone this. This isn't cool." Sometimes, fantasies needed to stay that way.

"Then what do you want to do?"

Emma thought about it and remembered what her thumb rested on. "I want to take your irons off." That was the first step in the right direction. After that, they could figure something else out.

Regina jumped, tucking her arms in close to her body. "No!"

Emma's brow furrowed. "What? Regina, those things hurt you. They made me think I killed you." It did not excuse the fact that she hit Regina with lightning, but they still needed to do something about the irons.

Regina shook her head and stepped away. "No, I need them."

Emma stared at her hard. "For what?"

Regina was quiet for a second, like she was thinking of a good answer. "I need them to go outside."

That was true. Emma was too busy to protect Regina when she went outside and a mob might be too much for even Regina to deal with, even with her magic. She also did not want Regina to hurt people, even if she had an excuse.

Beyond that, Regina seemed scared of her magic now. That probably was not healthy. Lots of ways she let Regina deal with things probably were not healthy.

"Regina, I think you have to deal with all of this. Wearing the shackles isn't right and I don't think they really say 'family life,'" Emma said. _She's not the only one who has to deal with all of this, but maybe this can be the start for both of us_.

Regina was quiet again and then when she spoke, her voice was low. "I can't trust myself to make decisions. These remind me of that." Her eyes fell to her irons and she stared long and hard at them.

Emma scrunched her face up. "What do you mean?"

Regina's shoulders sank as she sighed. "I always do the wrong thing on my own. These remind me I'm not on my own. They remind me not to do what I want to do. I should do what you or Henry would want me to do."

"That doesn't sound right. You're your own person and to hear my mom tell it, you were a good person. There's a good person in there."

Regina shook her head and sniffled. "No, she's dead."

Emma moved closer to Regina and resisted the urge to take her in her arms. "If that were the case you wouldn't care so much. Let's take them off." She hugged Regina at that point and rubbed her back. "Let's take them off and show everybody what a good person you can be."

"No. Please." Regina sounded like a frightened child and the way she tried to burrow into Emma's body, as if to hide, did not help.

"Regina." She did not mean to sound as firm as she did, but she knew that was the wrong way to go.

Regina trembled and whimpered against her. "No, please."

Emma sighed. "Is there a way to compromise?"

Regina shook her head. "I need them."

Emma let it go for right now. There were other things to worry about. "Could you not be a servant? I'm not comfortable with that." She had never been comfortable with the idea and to find out she subconsciously went with it did not help.

"Then what will I be?"

Emma had to hurry while she had the nerve. "My girlfriend? Henry's mom?"

Regina stared up at her with wide eyes. "Your girlfriend?"

"Well, we have admitted feelings for each other. I just figured girlfriends was the next step."

Regina nodded, but buried her head in Emma's chest again. "I don't think I know how to be a girlfriend."

Emma grinned and caressed right between Regina's shoulder blades. "Willing to try for me? For us? I think you'd be okay at it."

"Yes."

That seemed like a lot, maybe enough for the night. "Can we go to bed now? Talk more in the morning?" She was exhausted. Yes, there was so much to talk about, but they would not be able to do it in one night.

"Yes, please."

Emma wrapped her arm around Regina's waist and turned her to the bed. They both got into bed, lying on opposite edges. One false move and Emma would fall out. She had no doubt it was the same for Regina. She stared at the ceiling, body tense. Yet, she managed to fall asleep.

-8-8-8-8-

Regina could tell Emma was asleep almost the second she was out. It was a good sign that Emma fell asleep. Emma was comfortable with most of what happened enough to drift off. It allowed her to breathe a sigh of relief. This could have gone so much worse than it had. It could still go bad, of course, but for now it was all right.

From their time in Neverland, Regina knew Emma was like her when stressed—an insomniac. And that was why Regina was awake. There was still so much to this, still so many ways to ruin this.

Regina was not worried about Emma knowing her feelings. She was worried over her poor decisions ruining her life like before, or worse ruining Emma's life or Henry's life. That was why she was not ready to surrender her irons. But, she could not stay in her irons, not if they were going to be a real family.

"But, I'm not ready," Regina told the darkness. The darkness had no solutions for her, as always.

She had to get ready. She fiddled with her left wrist shackle and bit back a wince. It bit into her flesh and underneath it, scraping at intangible parts of her. She needed something to keep her from being the villain and these did the trick. How could she just let that go? _Well, you have to_.

She had to be able to be there for Emma and Henry. Emma was falling apart right in front of her and, yes, she tried to help keep her together, but it was not the right way. She was not doing the right thing. _And you know you're not. You're being a coward. This is all a cop out_.

_It doesn't matter anyway_. She could be scared all she wanted. She would ruin things no matter what. After all, Emma wanted her to be a girlfriend. She did not know how to be a girlfriend. She did not even know how to be a friend. There was no way to escape that. Look at how she treated Emma all the while having feelings for her. She was in no shape to be a proper partner or mate for someone. _You're going to ruin this_.

_No, you have to try_. Emma gave her a chance, so she needed to do something with the chance. She owed it to Emma. She owed it to herself.

Fear gnawed at Regina's belly, mixing with the itch of her bonds. She could not ignore the fear. It kept her up. She knew what she had to do.

After a couple of hours, Regina got up to start the day. She made breakfast as always and set the table. Coffee was made by the time Emma made her way to the dining room. Emma grabbed Regina into a hug and buried her nose in Regina's hair.

"Is this okay?" Emma asked.

Regina felt calm, settled. It made her want to cry. "This is perfect. It feels so nice." _So nice that you need to figure out how to make this work. You can't lose this_.

"Yeah. What are we going to tell Henry?" Emma asked.

"Yeah, because this is weird," Henry said with a grin.

Both women gasped and jumped apart. Before Regina could figure out what to say to Henry, Emma pulled her back into the embrace. Henry nodded and grinned.

"So, you're a couple now?" he asked.

They looked at each other. They had not worked that out, even though Emma wanted them to be girlfriends. Regina wanted something similar. Maybe more traditional, even if she did not know how to do that.

"We're together," Emma said.

Regina jumped in her arms, but Emma held her tighter. She did not contradict Emma. They were together and it was nice. Their son deserved to know as well, to avoid any issues he might have later on.

Henry studied them, squinting at them. "So, Mom's not a servant anymore?"

"I am not," Regina replied.

Emma looked at her and smiled. Regina smiled right back, even though she knew what that meant. Her heart raced at the thought, worry nibbling at her guts. She had to get her act together or she would ruin this. She had to do better, be better, and not just for herself, not just for their son. Hell, not even just for Emma. She had to be better for their family, for their hopes, for their dreams.

"So why are you still wearing those chains?" Henry's eyes fell to the irons.

Regina sighed. "I know the chains bother both of you, but I need them. So, a compromise?" She hoped it worked. There had to be something to work for all of them until she could trust herself not to be a villain.

"What's the compromise?" Emma asked.

Regina rolled her right shackle with her left hand. "I keep the neck one, but you can remove the wrists bindings."

Emma and Henry looked at her. Regina squirmed a bit, but Emma held her tightly. It helped keep her calm, ever as it felt like there were ants under her skin.

"That's fine, Regina," Emma said. "Small steps."

Henry nodded. "Yeah, Mom. Small steps."

Regina breathed a sigh of relief. They supported her desire. It put strength in her spine. She could do this. They had faith in her. She could do this.

Henry threw himself into the hug. Regina was surprised by his enthusiasm, but would rather hold him than analyze the situation. She pulled Henry tight and inhaled his scent, which soothed her entire being. Emma managed to hold them even closer. This was why she had to work things out with her thoughts and needs.

-8-8-8-8-

Next time: there's a little domestic scene between the Swan-Mills family before Emma has to put up with Hook again.


	11. Bleeding

I don't own these characters; Disney/ABC does.

11: Bleeding

The time had come to remove her wrists shackles and Regina could not help trembling as Emma took her hands. Emma looked at her as she held Regina's hands and it took everything inside of Regina to not look away. She wanted to lose herself in a sea of hazel and she did not mean that in a romantic sense. She did not want to be herself anymore. She had gone beyond not wanting to be the Evil Queen and wanting to die as Regina. She did not even want to be Regina now.

Regina was an unproven, unknown entity. They liked to think she was that teenager who saved Snow, but that could not be true. Not after that everything that happened. That girl was dead and who knew what would rise in her wake? It could be something so much worse than they ever considered or something pathetic and weak. They had no idea. And beyond that, while that Regina was dead, the Evil Queen lived on, inside of Regina.

The Evil Queen was not to be trusted, not with decisions, not with hearts, not with magic. She was not to be trusted with anything. She destroyed everything she touched and left nothing but tragedy in her wake. Why did Emma trust her? Was Emma out of her mind? Regina was almost certain that was the case. Why else would Emma trust her without these irons?

"It's all right," Emma said, her voice low as if she did not want to frighten Regina.

Regina swallowed. It hurt her throat, her chest, and everything else. "It's never all right." Life was misery. At least with the shackles on, she felt like it was not her fault and she could not lash out when things did not go her way. She could not lay waste to everything in their lives with her irons on. Maybe ruin things, but not severe and total devastation like the Evil Queen could do.

Emma pulled her into a hug. Regina yelped in surprise and tensed before she realized what was going on. It was hard to remember the last time someone, especially an adult, gave her a surprise embrace. Emma did not let her go for the few seconds she was stiff and Regina had a feeling she needed to get used to this. It was a little weird as she knew Emma was not a hugger typically. Did this feel good to Emma? Did Emma like holding her?

Regina took a deep breath and relaxed into the embrace, sighing as she enjoyed Emma pressed against her. And then Henry came in, hugging them both. Regina could not remember a time she was involved in a group hug. And now, it hurt again. It hurt in a different way. _Don't ruin this, don't ruin this, don't ruin this_. The only thing keeping her from falling apart and bursting into tears from the overflow of emotion was the fact that Henry was there.

Henry stroked Regina's back and it was quite soothing. "I know this is scary, Mom. It's scary for all of us because it's new. Change is always scary. The unknown is scary, but together we can face anything, curses, monsters, being a family."

"Family." Regina's heart thumped heavy and that Regina she swore was dead practically wept inside of her. That was the Regina she wanted to die as and she was uncertain if she could live as that Regina. For too long she had convinced herself that Regina was dead, even now.

There were glimpses of that Regina, but Regina had ignored her. She had done it for so long it was easy to pretend that Regina was gone, a memory, maybe even a fiction. But, she was there. She was the one who put poor resurrected Daniel out of his misery. She was the one who swallowed a death curse with only the hope Emma would make it through, and she was the one who longed for nothing more than a life where she could care for Emma and their son. They could be a family. It was terrifying and heartening at the same time.

"Yes, Mom, we're a family," Henry said with more confidence than someone who had been through all he had should be able to express to the person who put him through most of it.

Regina could feel the tears sting her eyes. She sniffled and kissed the side of Henry's head. Emma leaned in and kissed the top of Regina's head. There was no way to hold the tears back then. No one mentioned them.

"So, can I take these off now?" Emma asked as she pulled away just enough to hold Regina's hands and look her in the face.

Regina did not trust her voice, but she nodded. Henry remained by her side as Emma held one hand and unlocked the iron cuff. Regina jumped at the click of the lock and Emma gave her hand a squeeze.

Regina felt a warmth spread through her and at first she thought it was the return of her magic, but her magic never felt this good, this right. Her magic never flowed through her like a calm stream. Her magic was a boiling geyser, waiting to erupt from her. It was a howling wind, calling to be set free. This was something totally different.

Regina caught Emma's gaze and remembered when they moved the moon. That was what this was like. It was a touch that started a magic hat, a touch that ignited a flame. Emma's magic flowed into her, mixed with her own, and became a hot cup of tea on a cold morning. This was whispers on a hot night in a dark jungle. She felt like she could float off into space and never desire to come down. She sighed, as if the weight of the world came off of her shoulders and tension had released from her belly. It felt like she might be able to do this.

"Feels good to get that off, huh?" Emma asked with a shy smile.

Regina tried to fight down a blush, grateful Emma misinterpreted the sound. "Yes."

Emma let the cuff fall to the floor with a dull clang and then caressed the raw skin of Regina's wrist with her thumb. That felt even better. It was like a favorite dessert after a stressful day. Regina's skin tingled and there was glitter in her blood.

"Oh, man, Mom. Your wrist looks really bad," Henry said.

Regina tore her eyes away from Emma to see what Henry meant. She expected the redness and rawness, but there were blisters, boils, and pus with those things. Her flesh was discolored, almost like it was rotten. Emma winced and quickly grabbed for Regina's other hand. She wasted no time unlocking Regina's other wrist, which looked as bad as the first.

"This is necrosis at a much faster rate than I would've expected," Regina said without thinking.

Emma frowned. "You knew this was going to happen?"

"Not exactly. I could simply feel the strange itch of it." She could feel her body decaying. The irons blocked something in her that needed to breathe, even if she never used it. She could not deny it now.

Emma's eyes drifted to her neck and she stared. "Regina, maybe we should do your neck, too. Your wrists look like you need a doctor."

Regina shook her head. "The neck isn't tight like the wrists." This was not a lie. The wrist bonds cut into her flesh while her collar hung loose enough for her to put her fingers through it.

Emma's shoulders dipped a little as she blew out a breath. "Regina, boils and grayish-green skin don't come from tightness. You just said your wrists are pretty much dying. We don't want that to happen to your neck." She put her hand up, as if to touch the collar. Regina was not moved and eased back just a bit. Emma pinched the bridge of her nose and closed her eyes for a long moment. "Okay, lemme just see."

"Yeah, Mom. Please." Henry took her hand and gave it a squeeze.

It was Regina's turn to release a sigh. This was not fair at all, but she already knew they were a team. At least they were a team showing concern for her now.

"Okay, but put it back on, even if it looks bad," Regina said. There was a huge possibility it would look bad. She did not understand her magic enough to know exactly what the irons were doing. It did not help that she did not know how Rumple had enchanted her bonds. They could be slowly killing her for all she knew. What she did know was that they kept her from making poor decisions because they kept the decisions out of her hands.

"Fine, but if it looks bad, like your wrists, we're going to the doctor," Emma replied.

"Fine." It would probably be necessary if her neck looked like her wrists. _I'd probably need Morgan to look at it if it's as bad as Emma fears_. There probably was no one else close to qualified to examine what the bonds had done to her.

"Okay. Lemme see."

Regina raised her chin as Emma ducked a little. She brushed Regina's hair back, fingers grazing the little skin exposed on Regina's neck. Regina bit back a quiver, not wanting to alarm Emma and also not wanting to show how affected a simple touch could make her. The click of the lock made her jump and Emma looked up at her, checking on her.

"It's okay. Just caught by surprise," Regina said.

Emma nodded and then eased the collar away from her neck. There was no negative reaction from Emma or Henry, so it probably did not look too bad. It was easier to care for her neck, as the collar did not bite into her flesh. She could wash and soothe it with balms.

"Your neck looks okay, beyond the expected redness from walking around with a thick hunk of metal on you," Emma said.

"Can you put the collar back on now?" Regina's chest already felt tight without it. She _needed_ to not be in control or things would crumble around her.

Emma stared at her for a long moment with a slight wrinkle in her brow. "You sure?"

"Yes, please." She was begging, pleading to be collared, and she sure her eyes showed that as much as her tone.

Emma nodded, recognizing Regina's desperation. "Want to heal your wrists first?"

"You really need to practice doing this, so our lessons stick," Regina replied.

Emma offered her a soft smile. "Maybe if you taught me for more than a few days in a row, I'd know how to do something."

The request was a ploy to keep Regina out of her irons, but she nodded. Emma needed to know magic, especially since Rumple was going unpunished and was free to wreak havoc. He might eventually decide to help his son woe Emma and he would not care Emma was not interested. He would do anything to make his son happy, to stay in his good graces.

Emma eased the collar back onto Regina's neck and locked it into place. She smiled at Regina, who smiled back. The pains in Regna's chest eased away. Okay, with the collar in place, there was a greater chance that this new found family between them could live.

"You two should get going. It won't do to be late," Regina said.

They nodded, but hugged her again before moving to get out of the house. It felt as good as second time as it did the first time. She walked with them to the door to see them off. It was a good morning all things considered. She glanced down at her wrists. Yes, still a good morning.

"I should call Morgan and ask her what I should put on these, though." Regina moved to find her cell phone and make that call. She should also check on Morgan and some others anyway. With the town the way it was, who knew what could be happening to them.

-8-8-8-8-

"I'm glad you and Mom realized how you feel about each other," Henry said as soon as the door closed behind him and Emma. The brisk weather of the real world hit with a pointed wind. She hoped it was just the weather that was rough for the moment.

Emma glanced at him. "You say that like you knew." How could he know? He was only eleven. Not to mention, they did not know and it was their emotions.

"I've heard Ruby arguing with people about it. At first, I thought she was joking because this was really early on when you came, but she kept going and going. She thinks you both had a crush on each other from the start."

Emma arched an eyebrow. "Does she now?" That would be something to discuss during any downtime they might have. _Downtime_. That was a joke. "Did she say any of this to you?"

He shook his head. "No, I just heard her say it to different people. Sometimes, I thought she was trying to be annoying to people, but again, she wouldn't stop. Well, not like on going, but she talked about it a lot."

"Okay. You have to stop the eavesdropping as well. It's rude."

He sighed, shoulders dropping as they made their way to the car. "I know. Sorry. I'll work on it."

That was good enough for Emma. "How's school going?" She hoped Neal had not just popped up again.

Henry told her about school as she took him to school. Things sounded as normal as they could be with several teachers gone and an assistant principal position vacant. Classes were filled as best they could be and subjects were taught as best they could be. It was good the school made the effort, even if they could not live up to the standards of normal school.

The Royal Council needed to do something about that. But, they needed to do something about a lot of things. As long as school was safe, Emma would try not to worry about it. She hoped the other schools in town were doing the same.

"The tough thing is some of the kids. They're really down," Henry said.

Emma's face scrunched up. "What do you mean?"

"Some of them got kicked out of their homes when the Curse broke."

"They're not mad at you over that, right?" Emma hated to think Henry could be getting bullied for doing the right thing.

He waved his hand. "No, no, no. Nothing like that. School's surprisingly calm. It's just those kids are sad and worried over what's going to happen to them. The teachers that are still there are doing their best to make us feel okay. Principal Orlean is, too."

"I'm glad." With luck, the other schools around town were the same. Unfortunately, she never had the time to check. They had not called, so that might be a good sign, but it could also mean the schools took matters into their own hands or had simply shut down like so many other public services in town.

Once Henry was at school, Emma went to work. Ruby was already there, organizing oddly enough. Emma would not complain. Anything that kept her from cleaning or organizing was always a plus. Ruby grinned at her.

"That's a pretty big smile for someone who stabs me in the back when I'm not around," Emma said.

Ruby arched an eyebrow. "What are you talking about?"

Emma put her hands on her hips. "Henry told me you tell people I have feelings for Regina."

Ruby scoffed, throwing her head to the side. "I don't tell anybody anything. We discuss."

"Discuss? And who the hell is 'we'?" Emma's nostrils flared. The last thing she wanted or Regina needed was to the subject of gossip.

"There are some people who feel you guys have a lot of unresolved sexual tension. I'm one of them. I won't name anyone else. I ain't no snitch," Ruby replied with a grin.

Emma groaned and palmed her face. "We don't."

"Oh, but you do. Besides, you like protecting Regina."

"She's my kid's mom."

Ruby snorted. "Even when you put stuff like that, it sounds like you're saying that's my partner. Everything about you two reads like a divorced couple about to get back together."

"That is not true." Where did Ruby come up with this stuff? She and Regina barely could keep from punching each other until recently.

Ruby shook her head and opened her mouth to respond, but suddenly closed it. Before Emma could gloat that she was right, Ruby rushed off toward the supply closet. Barely a second later, Hook walked through the door and everything made sense. Ruby was not a fan of Hook and had made her escape. _Why didn't she take me with her?_

"Morning, love," Hook said. He was like the thing that would not go away.

"Unless you're here to report a crime, it's time for you to go," Emma replied, pointing toward the door.

"I'm here to offer my services. The Royal Council has been complaining about the crime rate. Your father still thinks I'd be of great service to you."

"I've been the one complaining about that and I don't need your help. I have a deputy and you know that." Why was he acting so stupid? _Well, beyond the fact that he is_. David probably emboldened this idiot to come back and try again.

Hook made a show of looking around. "Where? Is he invisible?"

"First, my deputy is a she. You know that, unless your memory's starting to go." From his blank stare, he missed the age insult there. Emma did not let that bother her. "Second, I don't have to prove anything to you. I'm the sheriff and I'm not hiring you. I don't want you around. I couldn't possibly say this any plainer, beyond get the fuck out."

Hook stepped to her, right in her face, and held up his hook. "Listen to me, Swan, you were the one who kissed me, so you can stop playing coy."

Emma scoffed. "Yeah, I kissed you while the adrenaline was flowing and had nowhere to go." It was not like she could grab Regina and plant one on her, not with her parents there. Of course, that was when her parents' opinions mattered. Beyond that, she did not even want to think of what Regina's reaction would have been if she had done that. Feelings or no feelings, Regina probably would have struck her with lightning.

Unlike in Neverland, Emma did not care about her parents being there now, not with them pushing Neal and Hook in her path. They did not want what was best for her. _They don't even want you_. It was all right.

He smirked at her. He probably thought he looked charming, but was actually creepy. "Oh, you don't need the excuses."

"No, but apparently you do. Look, I don't need help. So, bye." She motioned to the door.

"Your father thinks otherwise."

"Yeah, well, my father also thinks it's okay to go back to the Enchanted Forest without me so…" Emma shrugged and waved both hands toward the door again.

He stepped closer for some reason. "Come now, love. Surely Daddy knows best." The glint in his eye showed he was very aware he was being a creep. He just did not care.

Emma growled. "Here's the thing, you're either going to leave through that door or out of the window. Take your pick."

He arched an eyebrow. "Why would I want to go through the window?"

Emma was not sure where to go with that and did not even bother. She would not be distracted by anything, even his stupidity. "Get the hell out." She pointed to the door again and then made a fist. In a moment, her fist would be in his face and she would literally kick him out.

"The lady asked you to leave." Ruby stepped into view, like she sensed Emma was at the end of her rope. "And maybe you should stop chasing after the ex of the boy whose mom you stole."

Emma could barely comprehend that sentence, but Hook's face dropped. How the hell did Ruby know everything? It had to be the werewolf hearing. It was just impossible to believe everyone talked to her about everything.

Hook glared at Ruby. "How the hell do you know about Milah?"

Ruby narrowed her gaze. "It doesn't matter how I know, but be aware I know and now so does Emma. You ruined one family for the love of your life and now you're willing to ruin another? And not just any other, but the ex of the boy who should've been your stepson?"

Hook chuckled, but sounded uncomfortable. "Baelfire doesn't have a chance with Swan." He smirked, but the confidence did not meet his eyes.

"You say that like a man who doesn't know Neal just hung out with Emma and her family. You think because David fawns over you the rest of the family does? Does Henry even know you? Would he prefer you to his dad?" Ruby took a step closer, challenging Hook.

Hook's jaw twitched. "I saved that boy's life."

"Really? When?" Ruby could not sound more skeptical if she tried.

"In Neverland. They never would've found the boy without me."

Ruby blew a raspberry and snickered. "That's not the story I heard. Pretty sure his mother found him and saved his life and then saved all your sorry asses by getting your piece of shit ship out of there while you stood around with your thumb up your ass."

Hook raised his hook and hit her with a fairly nasty glower. "You weren't there."

"I wasn't, but I hear things. That's why I know you already wrecked Neal's family once. So, maybe beat it." Ruby jabbed her thumb at the door.

"I didn't wreck anything. Milah made her choice. I was the better choice then and I am the better choice now." Hook tilted his chin up.

Ruby sucked her teeth. "Please, you're dead last on Emma's list and it's burning you up to know that, which is why you can't let it go. She doesn't like you, bro. It can't be any plainer."

"She's right. I'm very much not a fan." Emma pointed to the door.

Hook's nostrils flared, but he did not say anything. He stormed, trying to knock Ruby with his shoulder on his way out. Little did he know she was probably stronger than five of him. He fell off balance and stumbled out of the door. Emma laughed and gave Ruby a high five.

"You are a true best friend! Thank you for that!" Emma wanted to hug Ruby, but she managed to contain herself.

"No problem. He's an ass, strutting around like a hero like that bastard didn't shoot Belle."

Emma nodded. "Shot her across the damn town line, knowing what would happen to her."

"Yeah, so fuck that guy. I mean, I understood you working with him to get Henry back, but dating him is a hard no." Ruby put her hand up.

"Tell that to David then. I can't believe he's pushing me to date a pirate. Not just any pirate either, a pirate who betrayed us a whole bunch of times. Is this normal for the Enchanted Forest?" Maybe this was a cultural misunderstanding somehow.

Ruby shook her head. "It's normal to want a child to find True Love, but not over the first idiot who comes upon them. Not that it matters. David can push for Hook all he likes, but I'm putting my foot down as your godmother. You're not dating him."

Emma breathed a sigh of relief. It was nice to know someone in her life from the Enchanted Forest was not trying to push her toward a predictably toxic relationship. It was nice someone was not trying to get rid of her. She could breathe a little easier.

"How did you know that stuff about Hook?" Emma asked.

"Belle. We've been spending a lot of time together and she's been venting about her life. Loads of things about Hook came up since he's been trying to kill Rumple forever and a day."

Emma frowned. "Tell me that's helping Belle realize how messed up Gold is."

Ruby's shoulders sunk as she sighed. "I'm hoping as she tells me more and more, it's getting through to her like it is to me. Her life has been kinda messed up. She sees a lot, but not so much from him. It doesn't help that Neal's around and Rumple's acting like 'dear old dad' with him. I hate to think she's falling for this BS. She's always looking for signs he's a good man and we all know he's not. Just because his son wants to forgive him doesn't mean he's suddenly a good guy."

"I hope she figures it out. She deserves better."

Ruby held up a finger. "Speaking of Belle, tell Regina she needs to apologize to Belle. She'll know why."

Emma nodded. "I might put her on a twelve step program." Regina trying to make amends to others might help her understand there was some good in her. It might also help her understand the pain she caused and why people react to her the way they did.

Ruby chuckled. "Make sure I get a stop on her apology world tour then. She's rude."

"Who are you telling?" Emma laughed.

Ruby shook her head and took Emma's hand. She gave the hand a little squeeze. "I wish you could see how your eyes lit up with that. So, tell me if Neal is actually in the running. Snow gushes about him."

Emma scowled, feeling a sort of emotional whiplash. "She likes him. I think because he's Henry's dad and she wants that story to have a happy ending. It ended. It sucked. There will not be a sequel."

Ruby's mouth pulled to the side. "That bad, huh?"

"Yeah, and I don't understand why the hell my mother would want me with him. I mean, I get Henry wanting to know Neal, even though he's an ass, but why would my mom want me to be with an ass?" Emma shook her head. It was insulting. She was not worth someone who cherished her or truly cared about her.

Ruby offered her a sad smile. "Your mom's a hopeless romantic. I think it's one of the reasons she still wants Regina to turn it around. The romantic in her still remembers the Regina who saved her. And I think it hurts her to know Regina feels like she ruined her life."

Emma tilted her head as she took in Ruby's words. "I never get that impression. She always makes it seem like she did the right thing when it comes to Regina."

"I think Snow tries to put on a brave face with you. You're the daughter, but I'm the best friend. She talks to me about a lot of stuff that I think she feels like she shouldn't tell you," Ruby replied. It made sense.

"Does she hurt for me?" Emma asked before she could stop herself. All of Snow's pain seemed like it was about herself, about the pain Snow felt over the whole situation, and what Snow missed out on.

Ruby's face fell and she grabbed Emma into a hug. A lump formed in Emma's throat and she held in a sob. It was like Ruby knew anyway and gave her a tight squeeze. Still, Emma held in her emotions.

"Of course she hurts for you. She's trying so hard to be strong for you and try to make things up to you. She's crushed by everything you went through. I'm sorry she's not good at sharing with you how much you matter to her. You matter so much to her. You really are her world."

Emma sniffled and was ready to have a breakdown. She was Snow's world? Why was it impossible for her parents to show that? Before her emotions took control and the questions poured out of her, the phone rang. The shrill broke through the mood. They pulled apart and Emma answered the call. Their moment was gone, but Ruby smiled at her anyway.

"There's a mob outside the supermarket. They jumped on Regina as soon as they saw her." The line went dead.

"Shit. They're beating Regina up again," Emma said, rushing to the door. Ruby was right behind her. _Please, be okay. And, please, don't hurt anybody_. She did not want to deal with being scolded over taking Regina's irons off yet again.

"They're venting on her. There's so much frustration in town."

"I get that, but they can't take it all out on her. That's not going to help the town."

Ruby did not argue against that. They made it to the supermarket in about two minutes and sure enough there was an angry mob. Regina was on her feet, hands out, not a hair out of place yet, at the center of a very tense circle of townies as trash blew in the breeze. Emma got out of the car, but used the radio as a loudspeaker.

"Break it up! Break it up or arrests will be made," Emma said. Ruby flashed the lights for her.

People turned, looking at her, at the cruiser, at the badges. They knew what she would do, so they scattered like roaches with the lights on. Regina remained in her defensive position, eyes wide and alert, but not really seeing what was right in front of her. Emma approached her with caution, not sure what might set Regina off. Once she stood in front of Regina, she grabbed Regina into a hug. Regina was stiff for a long moment, then she yanked Emma to her and sobbed into her shoulder.

"Shh. It's okay." Emma rubbed Regina's back. "It's okay. You're okay."

Regina continued to cry, so Emma held her. She did not know what else to do. Hell, what else could she do? She wished there was a way to take the pain away. The pain for all of them. Not just her family, but everybody, the whole town.

-8-8-8-8-

Next time: Emma and Regina have their moment before Emma has to deal with Neal.


	12. It's Called Karma

I don't own these characters; Disney/ABC does.

12: It's Called Karma

Regina could not believe she broke down in the middle of the street, in Emma's arms, which made it better and worse at the same time. It made her look weak in front of those who meant her harm, but it reminded her that Emma cared about her. She had made the right decision by not flattening all of those bastards the second they started with her. Her fingers had itched for action, but she held back.

"It's okay. They're just all keyed up," Emma said, whispering to her as she nuzzled Regina's hair.

Another sob escaped Regina. She understood they were all keyed up. She was keyed up as well. She felt like she might tear out of her skin. There was so much going on inside of her and she could not even hope to contain it right now.

"Let's get you out of the street," Emma said. Regina could only nod.

Emma walked her home, holding her close the whole way, as if shielding her from the townspeople out for her blood. She wanted to bury herself in Emma's protective aura, curl into her and never leave. She was not sure if it was from being overwhelmed or what, but it was there. It was strange. When did she turn into this person?

Once they were in the house, Emma led Regina to the couch and sat down, pulling Regina to her. Regina took that as an offer to cuddle and she did just that. Emma held her like she feared Regina would literally come apart at the seams in her arms. It probably did not help that Regina was shaking.

_What the hell is wrong with me? Why was that so overwhelming? Why am I feeling so much? _Hardly a week ago she would have no problem littering the streets with their bones, but not now. How could she change so much so quickly?

"It's okay. They're not going to hurt you," Emma said. She kissed the top of Regina's head. "And you're not going to hurt anybody."

Regina's breath hitched in her chest. How did Emma know? She tucked her face into Emma's neck and inhaled her scent. It helped calm her down.

"Ready to talk about it?" Emma asked.

Regina nodded into warm flesh. "I panicked. They panicked. I could see how scared they were and it actually struck me."

"Yeah?"

It was strange. She could not recall the last time she noticed what someone else felt outside of Henry and Emma, and hell she ignored them quite often. She could not ignore it now. It bothered her more than her irons had, dancing just under her skin, unreachable to scratch the itch. Was this from believing the old Regina, that bright-eyed teenager, was still somewhere alive in the abyss that was her soul? The Regina who never wanted to hurt anyone. The Regina who just wanted to live a peaceful life with her family. How could she still be alive? How?

"I wanted to just go pick up things to make you a special dinner, to celebrate us, I guess. Someone noticed I didn't have my cuffs on. He screamed and started crying. I mean, he was tucked into a ball, lying in the street, crying, but I hadn't touched him. He might have been saying something, but I can't be sure. It sounded like he was saying he just wanted to go home," Regina said. His breakdown perplexed her, but it hit something inside of her somehow.

Emma tilted her head. "Home?"

"Yes. I'm not sure if he meant the Enchanted Forest or…"

A small frown settled on Emma's face. "I have been getting calls daily about regular people getting pushed out of their homes by nobles who think their houses aren't good enough for them. It always takes more energy than it should to get the nobles to get the hell out, but then the Council comes in and somehow the regular person loses their house."

Regina nodded. "He could've meant that, but either way, he didn't seem to know what to do and just cried. It attracted attention."

Emma sighed. "I think the citizens of Storybrooke are starting to lose it. Like the anger is giving way to something else."

"I believe you're correct. I'm not sure what that something else is, though. They surrounded me. I put my hands up and they paused. People behind them were screaming and barking, but they didn't advance. We were in a standoff at that point, all waiting to see if my magic worked without the cuffs."

"You were scared it would come?"

Regina took a breath. "I could feel it." It flowed down every nerve and through every vein. The collar would not be enough to stop her should she explode.

Emma stroked her shoulder. "So, you were scared you'd hurt someone?"

"I wanted to, but held back. How long will that last?" How long would she be able to stop herself from hurting someone if they wanted to hurt her? How long would she be able to keep the Evil Queen buried inside of her?

"Give yourself some credit."

"I lied to them. I said the collar was enough and they should leave me alone. I don't think they believed me." Why should anyone believe her? She was a known liar.

Emma caressed her side and it helped calm her down. "It was a good lie. You were trying to protect yourself without hurting them. You did good."

It was nice to hear. Regina trembled in Emma's arms. She had not expected the praise. She had thought she handled everything wrong, but maybe not. Even the idea of doing the right thing was overwhelming. Before, it was like she caught in an undertow, but now it was like she was trending water in the middle of the ocean.

"You did so good." Emma caressed her hair and kissed the top of her head. With every touch, Regina felt calm setting in.

Regina wanted to melt into a puddle at the words. She was only a little surprised to find herself aroused by the words. _What would she think of me if she knew?_ Regina was not sure, but she knew there was no way for them to have a relationship if she was not honest, if they could not talk to each other.

"I like it when you say that. It makes me feel good. You make me feel good," Regina said. Good really was an understatement.

Emma purred. It was low, but there. Maybe Emma liked to be praised, too. It did not have to be overt like Regina, but it was there. _I'll have to remember this and let her know when she's doing things right_. It made sense to her. Emma probably heard kind words even less than she did in her life. She snuggled in closer to Emma, held onto her tight, but careful, and hoped Emma understood.

"You don't want to put the cuffs back on, do you?" Emma asked.

"No, I'm content with the collar." It reminded her who she belonged to more than anything else now and she delighted in that. She could behave, be good, and be loved.

"Did it remind you to do the right thing?"

"Not really. It's just comforting."

Emma pulled away enough to look at her. "Comforting? How?"

Regina sighed. Was their relationship ready for this conversation? Probably not. It was much too young, too new. But, their feelings and personal relationship were not young, were not fragile. Still, she was not ready to talk about it.

"It just is for now," Regina replied.

"Okay." Emma caressed her hair again and kissed her crown again. "Okay. I'm glad you're okay. I was really scared when I got the call. I didn't want to see you in the hospital again."

"I don't want to go to the hospital again, but I don't want to hurt anyone either, especially now that I get to see how broken they are. I don't know what to do, how to react to things, and they don't seem to know any more than I do."

"Maybe you should go back to seeing Archie."

Regina sighed. "I'm not sure he helped." Maybe she had not seen him long enough, but she did not think he did anything for her, not with the way she fell to her mother's side almost immediately, not with the way she wiped Henry's mind after confessing to him that she had the fail-safe device, and not after feeling absolutely not remorse while tied to Pan's damn remorse tree.

"You have a lot inside of you, though."

"As do you, but you have not graced his office." Regina winced as soon as the words left her mouth. It was like all she could do was be mean to everyone. For all her therapy with Archie, she dived into her old habits almost every chance she got, even though she was too aware her behavior could cost her Henry.

Emma stiffened briefly. "It never occurred to me to go. I've been to counseling before with mixed results. Sometimes, I think it depends on the counselor. Maybe I should go. I've never really been involved in a one on one thing. It was always like a group thing. I might actually need it. It's not every day you find out you're a fairytale character."

Regina chuckled, but was pleased her suggestion was taken well. "We might want to send Henry as well, if he doesn't want to open up to us."

"You're right, but so far he seems very open with talking to us. I think, even though he wants to know Neal, he's really happy to have us."

"I'm happy with us, too," Regina accidentally said. Life had taught her admitting to happiness was the easiest and fastest way to lose it.

"Me, too."

Regina's heart fluttered. Would Emma still like "us" if she knew one of the things Regina liked about this? Pulling back, she stared into Emma's eyes. Would it freak Emma out? Probably not. She was not as pure as the driven snow, after all. But, she probably would not want to deal with that part of Regina.

"Hey, can I kiss you?" Emma asked.

Regina's heart fluttered again, but the fact that she asked drove home the idea she probably would not want what Regina wanted. _You should be happy that she respects your boundaries and agency_. Of course, she was happy with that, but apparently, she desired more.

"You can kiss me whenever you want." _It would be even better if you told me to kiss you_. Regina did not know where the desire came from. Maybe it was the trust. She had never trusted anyone quite like she did with Emma. Emma would not abuse this power like others had and would.

Emma did not need to be told twice and kissed Regina like she wanted to do nothing else ever again. Regina sighed into the contact and let Emma control the pace of the kiss. She let Emma command her mouth and loved every second of it. Emma seemed content with that as well. Maybe she would not be bothered by what Regina wanted, maybe needed.

They lost themselves in each other. Emma's hands went from her hair and her side to her waist. Regina shifted her body and then Emma turned her completely, so she was straddling Emma. It took all of her willpower not to ground down on Emma. She waited. Emma might silently direct her again. Her patience was rewarded.

Emma gave a small tug to Regina's waist and that was all she needed. Regina rocked against Emma, making them both moan. One of Emma's hands went from Regina's waist to her breast. Sparks shot through Regina and she jumped against Emma. Emma's hand moved from her breast to her neck and ran into her collar. Emma stopped and pulled away. Regina whimpered, feeling deprived. Emma stared at the collar and she flicked the lock on the collar.

"You sure you don't want to take that off?" Emma asked.

Regina bit the inside of her cheek to keep from visibly balking. _Yes! I want to keep this on_. "I'm comfortable with it." It felt like that came out weird, but she could not pinpoint where she might have gone wrong.

Emma squinted as she studied Regina. "There's something more to this, isn't there?"

Regina took a small breath, wanting to make sure she did not give herself away more than she already had. "Maybe, but it is a good reminder for me to do the right thing. See what happened today."

Emma sighed and shook her head. "I wished you'd just tell me."

"I will. One day. Is that all right?" The last thing Regina wanted was for this to come between them without her even saying anything about it.

Emma shrugged. "I guess. As long as it's not hurting you or anyone else, I guess it's okay. I should get back to work. Can we pick this up when I get home?"

Regina smiled. "And what is 'this' exactly?"

A smile lit up Emma's face as well. "Well, talking and maybe some kissing and cuddling again."

"I'd like that." She still wanted to cook something special for Emma, but she did not want to tempt fate by going outside again. She would use her time alone to figure out what to do.

Emma smiled and gave her a quick peck to her lips. She lifted Regina off of her, with noticeable ease. Regina shivered at the possibility. Okay, she was going to make an appointment with Doctor Hopper. After that, she would work on a dinner date.

-8-8-8-8-

Emma made her way back to the station. She felt like she floated there. Ruby snickered the second Emma walked through the door. She ignored the sound.

"You strip searched Regina for weapons or something? You're way too happy," Ruby said from her spot at her desk.

Emma tried to glare. She really did, but it was impossible. "Shut up."

Ruby clutched her chest as she was wounded. "Oh, burned! Well, while you were busy getting lipstick smeared all over your face, we got another call."

Emma's mood shifted. "We did?" Thank god it wasn't Regina this time. "And do I have lipstick smeared on my face?"

Ruby waved the questions off. "Yeah, you do. And I handled the call, but yeah, there needs to be more than two of us."

"No shit." Emma took out her phone to see herself. Okay, yes, there were some smears on her face. She could not bring it in her to care beyond rubbing her mouth until it was gone. She kind of missed it. _Gotta get some more of that later_. The thought made her smile.

Ruby's forehead furrowed as she scowled at nothing. "How the hell have you been managing these crazy people on your own? David's an asshole for leaving you here."

Emma straightened up at that, feeling validated thanks to her friend. But, what had Ruby dealt with to understand how she felt so quickly? "What happened? I didn't mean to leave you alone like that."

Ruby shook her head. "It's cool. You earned a break and it's not like you walked off the job or anything. I just had to get some idiots from vandalizing the vitamin store."

"The hell? Who attacks a vitamin store?"

"Idiots. The lady who runs it was a witch in the Old World and these guys felt like she should be punished for it. And I think they wanted to steal some vitamins, like they thought it was drugs or something, but that's a little unclear."

"What the fuck? Why do they keep pulling this nonsense? Was the owner okay?"

"She was a little shaken up, but fine. She hadn't hurt anybody. Funny enough, she said she wanted to go back to the Old World, too."

"Get the hell out. Why?"

Ruby chuckled. "She said she missed her woods. I think she was more freaked out that she, like many magic users, can't figure out the rules of magic here. If she can't figure it out, she can't protect herself when the villagers get restless."

"And they damn sure are restless." To the point of annoyance and dangerous.

Ruby nodded. "Anyway, I vote we go back to looking for other deputies."

Emma was happy to hear that. She would like to make it through the month without burning them both out. They pulled up to the desk with the other candidates' files. They barely made it through two files before Ruby had to say something.

"So, how quick was the quickie?" Ruby asked with a massive grin.

Emma frowned. "None of your business."

"You sure? Because I'm a werewolf."

"Oh, my god! You stop smelling me!" Emma pointed at Ruby. She did not even think she was turned on anymore, but the memory of kissing still hummed through her body._ Don't think about Regina grinding on you, don't think about Regina grinding on you, don't think about Regina grinding on you_.

Ruby wrinkled her nose. "I wish I could. It's super gross. It even spiked just now. So gross."

Emma threw her head back. "Oh, my god!" She covered her face with her hands.

"Regina got you all fired up and didn't deliver."

Emma groaned and put her hands over her ears for a moment. "Please, stop talking! I had to go. I'm working."

"I wouldn't have held it against you. In fact, you really should've kept Regina held against you and called in."

A frown cut across Emma's face. "I'm not leaving you with this mess to get laid. What the hell kinda person would that make me? Besides, I'm not sure if we're at that point. I mean, we only just got into a relationship and she was given to me as a servant. It seems a little weird."

Ruby scoffed. "Let's be serious, you're not treating Regina as a servant. I'm sure you put on a good show, but come on. You're probably treating her like the pain in the ass she's always been to you. But, the pain in the ass you can't seem to live without, like always."

Emma shrugged. "She's acting like a servant."_ I'm not sure how I'm treating her. Is it the same as always?_

"By making you dinner and junk?" Ruby leaned back in her chair. "Cuz Henry said and it just sounds like she's been domesticated."

"She's wearing a collar."

Ruby laughed. "She says to a werewolf."

Emma arched an eyebrow. "Meaning what?"

"If I had a girlfriend, it would be like fantasy, role play number one to do a collar and leash."

Waving her hands, Emma glowered at Ruby. "Dude, TMI and she's not a werewolf. She's not getting off on this. This was the only way for her to be close to Henry."

"And you."

Emma threw her hands up. "Fine and me. But, that doesn't mean she's getting off on this. I know her." She knew what Regina had lived through before becoming the Evil Queen. Regina would not want to be in that position again.

"You know her?"

"It's been more than getting on each other's nerves and arguing over Henry, you know? Neverland… it was something." Neverland had done something to them, even though she now suspected they were headed in that direction anyway.

Ruby shrugged. "Okay."

"You're really going to let it go just like that?"

"There's not really much to probe. I always figured you two would hook up. The idea that it's even deeper than that makes sense to me. That's your baby momma or you're her baby momma, whatever. Divorce lesbian mommies or whatever. But, you guys are that thing."

Emma shrugged. That somehow made sense to her, at least if she looked at things from Ruby's point of view in hindsight. When it was all happening, she would have thought Ruby was out of her freaking mind.

They continued to work, running around Storybrooke for various things, including having to talk a guy out of throwing himself off a bridge because his family had walked out on him when the Curse broke. In the evening, Emma got a text from Henry, requesting a chance to sit with Neal at _Granny's_. Emma gave him permission, but she wanted to be there. So, work was packed up for the night, including files for a few deputy candidates they would need to talk with later on, and the sheriff and her deputy made their way to the diner. She and Ruby parted ways there as Emma spotted Henry.

"No Neal yet?" Emma asked.

"I asked him to step away for a minute, so you wouldn't have to see him," Henry replied.

Emma could not the "aw" that escaped her. "Thank you." He was learning to think of other people beyond the sense of being a hero.

"I texted Mom to ask her if it was okay for me to skip dinner at home, so I could eat with… Dad."

Emma swallowed. The "dad" hurt. Deep in a pit she did not know could exist. It was deeper, darker than the abyss she once felt seeing Regina be the mother she never could. She could understand why Regina got to be "mom." She would never understand why Neal got to be "dad" and she got nothing, even if Henry loved her. "What did she say?"

"If it's okay with you. She also wanted to make sure you knew who I was with."

Emma held back a smile on that. _It's like we're parenting together, like we're together_. It was why she had not felt that loathsome pit in such a long time. _Where exactly does our relationship start?_ It would be something to think about while she watched Neal with Henry.

"Well, kid, have a big greasy burger while you can." Emma forced out a smile and hoped the tears stinging her eyes remained where they were. Maybe she and Regina could have dinner alone and figure things out.

"Thanks!"

Emma went to sit in the corner while Henry trotted off to retrieve Neal from the B and B side of the business. They sat where Emma could see them, but not hear them. Emma tried not to watch them, but it hurt. Every time Henry smiled at Neal, it was like a stab in the heart. _Is this how Regina felt about me when I showed up?_ That made things hurt even more. The idea she had brought this pain to Regina and had not cared about… how could she call herself a good person?

_Maybe I'm not a good person, was never a good person_. It would explain why her life was Hell. A good person would never put someone through this and a good person would have good things happen to them. _Isn't that what karma is all about? _Maybe she would never feel good and maybe that was why her son would eventually prefer Neal to her. It would explain why her parents would rather ignore her. It would explain why the town would prefer to drown in the Dark Ages.

_Maybe I deserve all of this_. The thought ate away at her stomach. She felt like she might throw up.

"Emma, ready to go?" Henry asked, standing before her like he magically appeared.

Emma blinked and her stomach twisted around itself. "You done?"

His brow wrinkled a little. "It's been like two hours and you still need to eat. I don't wanna starve you."

Emma's stomach growled at that. "Thanks. I'm pretty hungry." _I wanna eat my feelings, but I'd either choke on them or throw them back up_.

"Yeah. Come on." Henry practically walked her to the car. She could hardly fathom it. Too much emotion.

"Good visit?" Emma asked as they settled into their seats. Her voice was low, but steady. With luck, Henry would take it as her being a bit bothered over seeing Neal.

Henry's brow furrowed. "I dunno. I mean, knowing he hurt you, it makes me look at him different."

Emma winced, even though a selfish part of her wanted to celebrate. But, she was a parent and needed to be mature. Besides, she knew how this was. "Don't let how he treated me stop you. You're not me, so things should be different."

He shrugged. "I dunno. He asked a lot of questions about you and it sounds like he really wants you back and wants us to be a family."

"Is that what you want?" There was so much disappointment in his way if it was what he desired. But, it would solve so many of her problems. Her parents would probably like her. Henry would like her. She would hate herself, though. And Regina. What about Regina? She would be expected to keep Regina as a slave and they could be miserable together. Only she would not wish that on anybody.

Henry looked down and pressed his hands together. "Before I knew he hurt you, yeah, I wanted that. I wanted us to be a family. But, also, I'm really happy you and Mom are together. I know you'll make each other happy and I want that. I want you and Mom and me to be happy together. I want to be a family with you and Mom and I think that'll be way healthier than any other family we try to throw together."

Emma fought down a grin. "I want that, too." _He wants you. Regina wants you. People want you and you don't have to live in misery_.

"And Mom probably wants it, too."

Emma nodded. It was something to be discussed. Henry must have known that as he went to his room as soon as they got in the house. Regina barely got a hug out of the kid. Regina turned to Emma as soon as Henry was gone.

Regina's eyes were marred with lines, searching Emma for answers to questions she was scared to ask. Emma wanted her to ask, to avoid saying the wrong thing. She did not want to hurt Regina more, especially after knowing what Regina had to go through when she first popped up.

"You should go take a shower. I'll set up dinner," Regina said, her voice smaller than usual.

Emma swallowed around a lump in her throat. "It'll be just us. No way Henry can eat more."

"Never underestimate a growing boy's appetite. I made enough for him just in case."

"And if he doesn't eat, I have extra lunch." Emma grinned, but it sort of hurt her in a way she could not explain. Regina squinted at her, so she bowed out and then went to take a shower.

One hot shower and comfortable clothes later, Emma was back downstairs. She felt better in some ways, but there was still a little pit in her stomach. Dinner was not on the table. She glanced around and spotted a light on the deck beyond sliding glass doors that led to the backyard. There was a small table out there with two lit candles. _Hmm… might need to put on something beyond my favorite sweatpants_.

"Should I change into date clothes?" Emma asked, poking her head outside.

Regina looked her up and down. "No, you're fine. I like how those pants hang off your hips."

Emma glanced down at her waist. Her sweatpants were so worn, the drawstring barely worked and she rolled the waistband to keep them up. Still, they drooped low on her hips and Regina could not stop staring, it seemed. Emma smirked. _Oh, she wants my body_.

"Wish I knew you had a thing for ratty sleepwear," Emma said as she stepped outside.

Regina's eyes remained glued to her hips. "Not so much ratty sleepwear, but there's something about you."

Emma nodded. "Good to know." She glanced down at the patio table. "Has this table been out here the whole time?" Or had Regina dared to use her magic?

"It's been out here. You haven't really cared to look around. It's okay to think of this as home, especially since you didn't steal it from anyone."

Emma blew out a breath. "I'll get there. I think being open with you about my feelings and finding out you feel the same way helps." She sat down. "And it helps that Henry said he wants us to be happy, wants us to be a family."

Regina smiled from her seat. "He did?"

"Yeah. After sitting with Neal, who asked Henry personal questions about me, Henry said he's happy we're together."

"That is nice to hear."

"Yeah, he's growing up. He was worried about how I'd feel seeing Neal, too."

"How did you feel?"

"Well, he didn't approach me, so I was okay. I don't like him pumping Henry for information, but Henry wants to be around him. I get it, even though I don't like it." She shrugged.

"It hurts." It was a statement.

"I'm sorry I did this to you."

Regina shook her head. "No, I needed it. You helped set me on a different course. Could you have gone about it in a different way? I doubt it would've mattered. I would've assumed the worst and tried to do exactly what I did. So, this isn't the same."

"Still, I'm sorry. I feel… I dunno… worthless." Emma reached across the table.

Regina squeezed her hand. "Don't. You know how Henry feels, not just in wanting to know his father, but how he feels about you. He idolizes you. He loves you, so much."

Emma sniffled. "Are you sure?"

"I'm more than sure, Emma. He loves you so much. Neal will never replace you in his heart. Neal couldn't ever replace you, in any way. No one could replace you."

Emma could not help sitting up straighter. "Do you think…" She took another breath and stared into Regina's eyes. "Am I… am I a good person?"

Regina laughed. "You're being ridiculous. You're a great person. If you think because you're not going to forgive Neal, it makes you a bad person, please stop. You saved my life from a fire when I was trying to menace you. You rescued Henry. You're trying to keep this town together, even though these people are driving you crazy. You're so much more than a good person."

Emma nodded, took those words in, and let them roll around for a while. She never really questioned if she was a good person until now. It used to be she worried about being a bad person. She never wanted to hurt people if she could avoid it because she knew how it was to hurt, but she had hurt people. She had also helped people in her life. Did it all balance out? She did not know, but she hoped she was a good person. She would not let it bother her for now.

"So, is this our first date?" Emma asked with a grin as she sat up straight and looked around the table. She released Regina's hand to inspect the meal in front of her and check out the candles.

Regina gave a soft smile, glowing in the candlelight. "Is it?"

Emma thought about it. "You're going to count all that bonding in Neverland as dates?"

Regina shrugged. "We got to know each other as people there. Isn't that the purpose of dating?"

"You got me there, but now we don't have a first date anniversary, unless of course we count the day we left for Neverland."

"We have plenty of others."

"So, this is a real relationship? Like we're not even at the start?"

"Does this feel like the start?"

Emma tapped her chin. "No. It feels like we've been together for a while."

"I agree, just like we've been fighting it."

"Yeah."

"So, let's just agree we're in a relationship and this is a date. No reason to make things complicated or stressful, right?"

Emma smiled. That was true. The world was hard enough on them. It was good they could comfort and make things easier for each other. She reached across the table and held Regina's hand. This felt really good and right.

-8-8-8-8-

Next time: some of the pain goes away.


	13. Cure for What Ails

I don't own these characters; Disney/ABC does.

A/N: sexual situations ahead. You're welcome.

13: Cure for What Ails

Emma invited Regina to share her bed. It made sense. They could not be in a relationship with Regina sleeping on a cot, but Regina wanted it to stay. The cot could be kept folded in the corner until needed. She wanted Emma to use it for punishments, but she knew that would not happen. Emma would not want to punish her, even if she asked for it. _Maybe you should ask. You know Emma's lived quite the life_.

Intellectually, Regina should have known Emma had not lived the upstanding life of a goodie-goodie by Enchanted Forest standards. Not with her prison records anyway, but she had her fairy tale biased in place. She thought of Emma as "the hero," which meant squeaky clean good in her mind. Neverland talks changed that. Emma's life was raw, hard, and rough. Regina swallowed. _Did you have to think of it that way?_

"Do you have a side?" Emma asked, standing by the bed and pulling Regina from her thoughts.

Regina blinked a couple of times. "No. I typically sleep alone. And use the middle of the bed."

Emma rubbed her chin with her index finger. "Well, we can figure it out. You gonna sleep in the collar?"

Regina's hand went to her collar. She opened her mouth, ready to tell Emma everything. It almost poured out of her, like it needed to escape. But, all the talk about their relationship earlier stopped her words. Emma did not seem to think they were as secure as Regina wanted to believe they were.

"I've been sleeping in it," Regina replied.

Emma nodded and crawled into bed while Regina went to turn off the light. She eased into the left side of the bed. Emma had given her the side by the wall and had taken the side facing the door, like she would protect Regina if someone came into the room. _Or maybe I'm looking too deep into it_. She doubted it, though. Emma was always a protector.

They were still for what seemed like an eternity. There was a hum from outside, a small wind. Flickering light from the street seeped in through the drapes. And then, Emma turned on her side and lightly caressed Regina's arm with one finger.

"I want to hold you," Emma said.

"I'd like that." Regina would like that and more.

Emma moved a little more and then pulled Regina to her. Regina groaned at how easy it was for Emma to move her. Emma left her hands on Regina once they were close. It would be nice if she had some of her sexy, silk lingerie, but she was more than pleased with Emma's hands on her side and shoulder.

Emma sighed and it sounded very much like a contented purr. "I want to hold you all night."

Regina curled in close and felt more relaxed than she ever had in her life. It was like she was taking her first breath. She could hardly place the feeling. It flashed by, like a faded memory. She could not pin down when she had ever felt it. It could be something she imagined to try to understand it right now.

"You can do this whenever you want to. Please, feel free." Regina would revel in being held, cradled. _Is this how it's supposed to feel?_ She had never felt at peace in someone's arms. How was that possible? _What if all this time all I needed was a hug?_

Emma kissed the top of her head and stroked her side with two fingers. "Coming here to you, being like this, and knowing Henry is sleeping soundly in his room, it's like home. I've always wanted a home, family."

"I feel the same." And she would not ruin it with some weird kink.

"This makes staying worth it. Not just after Neverland, but from the beginning."

"It makes losing the Curse well worth it."

Emma chuckled a bit. "You and your Curse. I wish you'd have cursed everybody to Hawaii."

"No. Much too warm. No excuse for you to hold me close."

"Oh, I don't need an excuse now." Emma pressed her close and gifted her with kisses until they were full out making out. It was passionate, but all kisses and caresses, like teens too scared to go too far. It was almost wholesome and Regina refused to taint that, even though her body tingled and yearned.

-8-8-8-8-

Regina was pleased Henry tended to get up before Emma. It gave them a chance to get to know each other and… maybe bond. She was not sure if he saw it like that, but it seemed that way to her. He saddled up to the kitchen counter as she slid a breakfast sandwich in front of him. She poured him a glass of apple juice. He pouted.

"Aw. You did the flat bread instead of a croissant," Henry said.

"It's healthier." She had to do something to counteract all of the sugar he ate lately, not that bread was much better.

"The croissant tastes better."

Regina shrugged. "I know you think that's more important, but one day you'll realize otherwise." Or, possibly, marry someone who realized otherwise. Either way, she needed him to eat better.

"Why not a panini?"

"This is the bread you don't like as a panini, but will eat with an omelet, tomato, bacon, and others. Do you really want to argue with me over breakfast like I don't know what you eat and don't eat?" She arched an eyebrow at him, sort of daring him.

He smiled. "Good point." He jumped into the sandwich. There were no more complaints.

Regina sat down next to him with her coffee. "So, how was your time with Neal?" No matter what he said, it would hurt. It would always feel like she was not enough. _He doesn't mean it that way_.

Henry cut school to be with Neal, so he was obviously interested. He went to dinner with Neal. If Regina thought on it too hard, she could understand. A parent was a parent, no matter how awful, but it still stung like a bitch. She was a person who had her daddy, yet she still practically begged her mother for love and went along with her mother's terrible ideas for that love.

Henry chewed thoroughly and swallowed. "It was okay. I hope he stops asking so much about Emma next time."

Regina nodded. "Yes, she is not his business."

"Agreed. I wanted to tell him more about me and learn more about him, so I tried to keep the conversation along those lines."

Well, that was something. "You like him?"

"So far, I guess." He shrugged. "He's my dad."

Regina felt a flare in her blood and struggled to remain calm. She was not upset for herself. It was for Emma, who had loved Henry enough to break the Dark Curse was still just "Emma," as if she was not worthy of anything more. If it was anything like when Henry would refer to Emma as his mother to Regina's face, even though Emma had just shown up, then it was like having salt poured on a bleeding heart.

"Henry, I'm glad you took Emma's feelings into account when you saw him and you were open about what you were doing," Regina said.

"Well, I didn't want to start trouble, especially since you and Emma are figuring each other out and figuring out how we all fit together. And I don't want to hurt either of you. I want us to be a nice family."

Regina nodded and she wrapped her hands around her coffee mug, leaning in a little. "We want that as well. Maybe you should think of what that means to you."

Henry's face scrunched up. "What do you mean?"

"Well, what does Emma mean to you?"

"She's my mom," he seemed to say automatically, but as soon as he was done, his face twisted like the sentence left a bad taste in his mouth. "Well, you're my mom, but she's my mom, too. It's just in a different way."

It made sense to her rather than pained her as it used to. Emma had earned it. Not only did she love Henry, but she finally understood how he came first, not in a friendly sense. No, he came first in the sense that they needed to make him a better person. They needed to give him a better life than they had.

"And that's fine, but maybe you should figure out what that means. Maybe you should also figure out what you want from Neal and what it means to call him dad, even if you don't call him to his face," Regina said.

Henry rubbed his chin. "I'm trying to figure out how he fits, but I don't really know him yet."

At least he was not trying to force something. He was learning. Regina would take that. "Take your time. I won't stand in your way and Emma won't either." They knew what would happen if they did.

He smiled a little. "I know. I appreciate it."

Regina took a breath. "I'm going back to Archie. Do you want to make an appointment for you? You've been through a lot. You're still going through a lot."

He took a bite of his food, possibly to have time to think the question over. "Not yet. I want to be able to talk to you and Emma about stuff. You guys help."

Regina smiled. She would love for him to talk to her again, to trust her. She would definitely go to Archie again and get herself together. She would not let Henry down this time.

-8-8-8-8-

Emma rubbed her eyes as she flopped down into the nearest chair in the sheriff's station. She wanted to go home already. Instead, there were long hours left in the day and they had already done so much. There was not enough coffee on Earth to help her after having to crawl into a basement and save people from demon rats, yet somehow that was not the worst part of the day and there was so much day left.

Ruby did not look much better as she collapsed on an empty desk. "We can't keep this up." She scrubbed her face with her hands.

Emma sighed as she tore out of her jacket. It smelled like slime, which came from another call she would like to wipe from her mind. "We could, but we'll be dead in a month. And that's if we're lucky."

Ruby left her arm over her eyes. "How many calls was that already? It felt like a hundred."

"I stopped counting at ten. Why are people so touchy over livestock? And how the hell did that guy get a live cow anyway?"

Ruby shook her head. "Trying to go back to farming when you have the knowledge and store to run a pretty good restaurant makes no sense to me. Why would he want to close _Chicken Run_? I love that place."

"Me, too, but I guess it's hard to open when you have dumb-ass Lost Boys egging the place every other hour. I swore I'd get them families, but it's impossible to do when families are shuffling kids back in forth. I got more kids in the Lost Boys now than when the Lost Boys first showed up and they're not making our lives easier. Not that the rest of the town is doing us any favors."

Ruby turned to look at her. "Again, how the hell were you doing this with this before I showed up?"

"Not arresting people that's for sure. I didn't have enough hands." Emma glanced at the cell.

"Let us out!" Three townies banged on the bars.

"As soon as you calm down, we'll consider it," Emma replied. They were one of the middle calls. They had been annoying Emma and Ruby for the brief moments they were able to return to the station.

"But, not really. You tried to burn down the vitamin shop. And that's not cool. Some of us need vitamin D from there," Ruby said.

"Witches need to burn!"

"Guys, Willow's cool. Leave her alone. She's living her life, selling vitamins, and organizing a farmer's market, which I want to see. Hopefully, without that damn cow and especially without the fucking slime." Ruby turned to Emma. "You didn't arrest anyone while it was just you?"

"I did, but the Council made me let him go." And before the day was done, the same thing happened here. The townies got pardoned. Apparently, the Royal Council was fine with them trying to burn someone to death as long as that someone was a witch. Such bullshit!

Ruby was so upset by the Royal Council's decision that she punched a hole in the wall. She did not even flinch as bits of drywall fell to the floor. Emma was too tired to be bothered. The day was nothing, but mob violence against witches, demons, and villains once it was clear there were no consequences. Whoever they caught was pardoned by the Royal Council within an hour.

"Do these people have nothing else to do?" Ruby pulled her hand from the wall and wiped dust on her shirt. "Like the town is going to shit and this is what they're doing with their time? We haven't had garbage picked up in who knows how long and I don't think mail exists anymore, but no, let's worry about letting out thugs who keep trying to kill magical creatures for minding their damn business."

That was awful, but it was worse at the end of the day. Emma and Ruby broke up a fight in the park. A group of five against one. The one happened to be a troll and the group of five wanted to teach him a lesson. Maybe not to be a troll? Emma did not know.

What she did know was that the lesson involved trying to beat him up, but he hurt them enough where they needed medical attention. They went to the hospital while the troll went to jail. Emma and Ruby wanted to sort out the whole mess before letting him go.

"Sheriff, they started it!" the troll said.

"I've no doubt about that and I'm just trying to get the full picture. You won't be here long." Except a phone call from the Royal Council told her to keep him locked up. Apparently, he was a "dangerous troll" in the Old World. Emma let him go right after the phone call.

"You're really letting me go?" he asked, a suspicious squint in his eye.

"Yeah, you're the only thing between us and the gym being closed for good. Eventually, I'm gonna need to go there and beat up a heavy bag or go out of my ever loving mind," Emma said with a smile. "Besides, I don't make it a point to hold victims of hate crimes who successfully defended themselves." She especially did not like that the Royal Council did not stand up for him like they did nearly everyone else to end up in the cell. She did not like how this was going. Looking him up, the troll was a simple personal trainer. He had not bothered anyone since the Curse broke. His crime seemed to be being a troll.

"Time to go home?" Ruby asked. The sun had long gone down and with the dark circles around Ruby's eyes and lines on her face, she looked ready to pass out.

"Yeah. We're going to need to talk to this Council. Why should we hold Jon, but let go everyone else?"

"Let's fight that battle another day. Tomorrow, we have to decide on two other applicants."

Emma groaned. "They're all horrible. Not a single one worthwhile." After the people they wanted had turned them down, the Council submitted their suggestions. Emma and Ruby would rather get trampled by wild horses than take any suggestions from the Council now.

"Maybe you should ask Regina for help. She knows everyone. She could figure out who would work and maybe we didn't get their applications."

"Because they're bad guys." Emma's face fell into a deadpan. She could already hear the Council bitching about that.

Ruby did not respond and Emma accepted that, letting the matter drop. They locked up the station and went their separate ways. Emma went home and practically fell on Regina, lips first. Regina kissed her back and she clutched Regina like a lifeline. Emma brought her hand up to stroke Regina's cheek, but hit the collar instead. She pulled away to glare at the collar. That stupid Council wanted her to leave an innocent guy in prison. They gave Regina to Emma, like it was okay.

"Bad day?" Regina asked.

"The fucking worst."

Regina caressed her arms. The simple touch helped put her at ease. Emma sighed and leaned into Regina. One person's presence should not make her feel like everything would be all right, but apparently, that was what happened.

"Go take a shower. I know what you need," Regina said.

Emma hoped that was true, but Regina was rarely wrong about her at home. She took a hot shower and put her favorite sweatpants on. Never mind the fact that they were tattered at the bottom with a hole in the pocket. Never mind how comfortable they were. The important thing now was knowing Regina liked how they hung on her hips.

Emma wanted to wear her favorite tank, but it was way too worn to wear around Henry. Maybe when he went to bed. She could only imagine how Regina would like it. So, she put on a decent tank top. Once that was done, she went back downstairs to Regina.

"Come." Regina took her by the hand and led her to the living room. Well, this probably would not be a massage like before. _I gotta remind her to give me one of those again_.

Henry was laid out on one side of the sectional. There was a mug of hot cocoa topped with whipped cream by him. Not too far from that was another mug. A plate of cookies also waited. Regina set her down in the middle of the couch facing the television. Emma grabbed Regina to her, holding her like Regina was the only thing keeping her sane.

"What're we watching?" Emma asked.

Henry scratched his cheek. "Something called _Adventures in Babysitting_. I never heard of it, but Mom said you like it."

Emma's eyes went wide and she kissed the top of Regina's head. She tucked Regina as close to her as possible and grabbed her hot chocolate. She caressed Regina's thigh and maybe the world was not the worst place ever.

"You really remembered I liked this movie?" Emma asked in a low voice.

Regina somehow snuggled in closer. "Apparently, I've tucked away many little tidbits of what makes you happy." Neverland really was a game changer.

Emma smiled, pleased to matter to someone. Well, a couple of someones. So, she left outside to the outside and enjoyed her family. As the movie ended, Regina got up, Emma realized her hand was on Regina's hip, in her pants. Regina did not say anything, so Emma felt like it was all right. Dinner was served a little while later.

"So, Henry, school still normal?" Emma asked.

Henry pursed his lips. "Normal enough for homework, but that was more at the beginning. Toward the afternoon things got a little weirder. There was a protest."

"A protest? We didn't get any calls," Emma replied.

Henry shrugged. "I guess it was peaceful and that's why. But, some of the teachers are like minor villains and people don't want them around the kids, so they just showed up to complain to the principal and then some of the kids got involved. It was a lot of noise, but no one got hurt. I really think they just want the school to be normal and they can't figure out how to make it like that. I mean, the parents kept asking for regular teachers. What does that even mean?"

Emma could not answer that question, but she could understand parents wanting school to be normal. The other schools in Storybrooke had similar problems, but also had not called the sheriff's department. She hoped they were handling the situation as well as Henry's school.

Henry continued. "Plus, there's still unfilled spots from when noble teachers left and there are some kids not attending anymore. It's normal once you get in class, but going to lunch or gym, you get a glimpse of the madness. It's not dangerous. It's just you can tell things are off and it's weird and the kids were upset that parents showed up to complain about the teachers who stayed. Parents thought the villains might be dangerous, but again, the teachers still there are the ones trying to hold things together."

Emma shook her head. "I think your principal would call me if it was dangerous."

"Yeah. So, it's normal in class. Actually, in English, we're reading a book called _Animal Farm_. It's weird, but we like it. The kids have kinda learned to appreciate school and the stability and whatnot. It's one of the few places a lot of kids can go and it seems normal. So, it's okay." Henry eyed Regina.

Regina held up her hands. "I won't do anything as long as you're not hurt."

He smiled. "Okay. It's okay."

"It seems like the town is getting more out of control, though," Regina said.

"I think the Royal Council's going to start arresting villains from the Old World. They're causing the least amount of problems. They're really the most well adjusted people here," Emma said. Yeah, some of them complained about wanting to go home, but for the most part, they were not actively trying to make anyone's life worse.

Regina waved that off. "Many of them either came voluntarily, as in they knew I was casting the Curse and promised them Happy Endings, or they're just happy with this situation, being able to start over. Not everyone who is seen as a villain meant to be that way."

"If anyone shows that a change of scenery can change a person, it's you," Henry said.

"And how you can stop being a villain if you want to," Emma added.

"Well, they're actually doing better than I am. But, yes, the old villains would be the least of your problems. They have good jobs. Typically ones that suit them or ones they would've liked had a hero not stood in their way. They have grand homes and families if that was something they desired. It has to be eating up the nobility who I gave jobs of service." Regina laughed. "I know Sax is dying from being the mailman."

"He's a douche. Well, most of the Council are douches. But, wanting what the villains have and trying to get it through arresting them is BS. Trying to let the nobles take stuff from villains and peasants just because of rank is BS. Not everyone wants the stupid Enchanted Forest here, which is why some people are just having straight breakdowns," Emma said.

Regina shook her head. "They won't be able to recreate the Enchanted Forest, no matter how hard they try. Logistically, it won't be possible here. A large population has been condensed into a smaller area and many have decided to live their Cursed lives. It's a waste to try."

Emma nodded. "I'm going to talk to them. Not that it does much good. I talk to them every now and then and they treat me like I'm some punk kid."

Regina probably could not help herself. That one was practically served to her on a silver platter. "Aren't you?"

"Oh, ha, ha," Emma replied dryly.

"Maybe get them to let Mom take the collar and cuffs off, so we don't have to lie next time Grams comes by," Henry said.

Emma opened her mouth to say something, but shut it. It would not be mature to insult Henry's grandmother with him sitting right there. She had little problem lying to Snow whenever she popped up, inspecting the house, wanting to make sure Regina was still a slave. Whatever kept Snow and the rest of the Council from harassing them at home was fine by her and Regina. So, she shifted gears.

"We should do something this weekend. You know, as a family," Emma said. She craved, yearned for family activities when she was younger and now was her chance.

"Oh, can we play D&D?" Henry grinned.

"Uh, you don't get enough of this fantasy crap in life?" Emma waved her hands around.

Henry shrugged. "But, in D&D, I'd be in control."

"That is actually the greatest answer ever right now." Emma would love some control over pretty much anything.

"What exactly is D&D?" Regina asked.

Henry's face lit up and that was probably enough for Regina. "Oh, Mom, you'll love it! I'll teach you how to play tomorrow and then we can all play for real on Saturday. But, you get to play as a character that you can create and it can be pretty much anybody. It's fun!"

Regina looked so cute blushing over Henry's enthusiasm. Emma was pleased to see it. The night saved the day. Regina waved Henry and Emma off as she began to clear the table. Still, Emma tried to help, but Henry put a halt to that.

"Hey, come here for a second." Henry pulled Emma to the living room.

The look on his face reminded her of when he planned his operation. She could only wonder what this was about. She glanced over her shoulder to Regina, who shrugged. That was not helpful and then Regina was out of sight in the kitchen.

"We should try to find Mom's favorite movie and watch it with her," Henry said, his voice low, so Regina would not hear.

Emma let out a sigh of relief. "Cool idea. Do you know it? She's only ever told me her favorite TV show. I don't think _Netflix_ or _Hulu_ has it." It would be nice to sit as a family and do something Regina liked to pay her back for the great things she did at home.

Henry's face fell for a second. "Well, what if we find something like it?"

"Sounds good." They sat down and began their _Netflix_ search. It would be nice to have an excuse to cuddle with Regina on the couch.

"So…" Henry said.

"Yeah?"

"You and Mom."

Emma held in a wince. "Yeah, me and your mom." _Please don't suddenly hate the idea_. She could not see why he would not be in favor of things now after being so happy before. _Maybe Neal did something. Fuck him if he did_.

"You, me, and Mom." He bounced on his heels, not a mark of someone who was upset.

"Yup."

"It's really cool. We're a family. You're like both my parents. I mean, like…" He frowned. Okay, maybe he was upset with something in the equation. She hoped it was solvable without one of those factors having to be left out.

"Take your time, kid."

Henry scratched his head and squinted at her with a wrinkle in his forehead. "I'm not explaining this good. It's like we're a real family. Not like you're on your own and sometimes I'm with you. We're a unit." He interlocked his fingers together and held up his hands. "You and Mom are a team together, but also a team with me. My point is you're my mom." He took Emma's hand and looked her dead in the face. "You're my mom."

"And so is Regina."

He nodded. "Yes, but you're my mom, too. I don't mean that lightly. I know what it means to be my mom thanks to Mom. So, I don't say this lightly."

"Okay."

"When I call Neal 'Dad' it's not the same when I call you my mom. Being my mom holds weight. There's substance there. History. Family. Sacrifice. Love beyond anything I could've imagined, even with all my fairy tales. You're my mom."

Emma took a breath, but it hurt. Her chest was tight, as was her throat. She understood what Henry could not quite put into words. She was equal to Regina. Neal was not that. He was not in their family unit, but Emma was.

"We're the Swan-Mills," Henry said.

Emma laughed, but tears poured down her face. She grabbed Henry into a hug. She held him tight and close and breathed him in. Her son. Her family. The outside world might suck, but inside the house, life was good.

-8-8-8-8-

Regina glanced in the living room to see mother and son hugging. She took her time picking things up and cleaning. Emma seemed to be having a goodnight. Regina wanted to keep that up. And maybe even press their relationship to the next level. A good orgasm would definitely help.

She felt good, too. She had gone to see Archie earlier and felt like it was a good session. They picked up right where they left off and he commented she seemed like she was in a better place. It was a bit funny to both of them that he would say that while she was collared. The irony was not lost on him.

She had not brought up why she wanted to keep wearing the collar and he did not ask. She discussed her feelings for Emma and for their family. He was so understanding and encouraging. She soaked it up. It helped her in feeling confident in herself, not like when she was the Evil Queen. It made her believe she might be able to do the right thing.

Once Regina was done cleaning up, she joined Emma and Henry in the living room. By then, they were scanning through shows on _Netflix_. They watched a show that Regina found herself enjoying. She would have to watch more of it when she got the chance.

At ten, Henry went to bed and Emma pulled Regina into her lap on the sofa. _Is she going to put her hand in my pants again?_ Just thought made Regina shiver. It was possessive in a way Regina would never like, except with Emma.

"Thanks for tonight." Emma's arm was around Regina's waist and caressed her thigh.

Regina scoffed, trying to ignore the tingles creeping through her from where Emma's hand rested. "Hot chocolate and cookies are nothing."

"They're everything to someone who's not used to it."

Regina's heart swelled. She was appreciated. That was rare and precious. She took Emma's face in both hands and locked eyes with her.

"Can I kiss you?" She craved permission.

Emma did her one better, coming in for her own kiss. Regina pressed closer and Emma matched the pressure while easing her tongue in Regina's mouth. Regina moaned as Emma's tongue caressed her own. Emma's hands went to Regina's waist, turning her until she straddled Emma's lap.

Regina sighed. "I love how strong you are, how easily you can move me." Trust certainly changed her as this would have freaked her out not too long ago. The thought of Emma being able to physically overpower should not be a turn on, but it was.

Emma smirked. "Oh, yeah?"

Regina squealed as Emma stood up, hands tucked under Regina, on her ass. Regina locked her legs around Emma and looped her arms around Emma's neck. Emma kissed her again and held her up. Regina was not sure how she was not a puddle of goo at the moment. They were not upright for long, just long enough for Regina to need new underwear. And her back was against the couch and Emma was on top of her. The weight was perfect, to the point she whined when Emma pulled away.

"Is this okay?" Emma asked.

"Anything you want is okay with me." The truth. "I trust you more than I've ever trusted anyone." Also the truth. "And, yes, this is amazing."

Emma smiled at her, bright and radiant. Her hands went to Emma's arms, enjoying each cut of Emma's muscles. Emma dived in for another kiss. Regina accepted, enjoyed, and wanted more. She arched into Emma, who moaned loudly, and ground down against Regina. She pulled away again.

"This is fun and all, but we are not alone in the house," Emma said.

Henry might be in favor of their union, but none of them were in favor of him seeing certain acts of affection. "Good point. Bedroom?"

Emma got up and pulled Regina to her feet. Emma did not let her go, leading her upstairs. Regina felt butterflies. It was like a lifetime ago since she had such a nervous, but giddy feeling. Back when she was an idealistic teenager who thought she could run from the suffering the world wanted to weigh on her shoulders. Sometimes, she thought that person was an illusion, a front she put up to deal with her mother, but not this feeling. This flutter in her chest had once buzzed to life and was back in the most wonderful of ways.

Regina wanted to run to the room, but let Emma guide her. It was just as thrilling, like something from a cheesy romance novel. This was definitely new to her and she loved every second of it.

When they hit the room, Emma's mouth was back on hers. There were hot, lingering pecks on the lips, but they drifted to her cheeks, chin, and nose. Emma's hands went to Regina's waist and caressed the area, but it was not skin on skin contact. Regina's skin burned for Emma, but she also melted over Emma going at her own pace.

"Get on the bed," Emma said.

Regina did not have to be told twice, but she was beyond pleased to be told. She sat on the bed and Emma made herself comfortable in between Regina's legs. Kissing happened once again and Emma pulled Regina flush against her. She clung to Emma as Emma pulled off Regina's shirt.

The stripping broke the kiss for a second. Regina missed Emma's lips in that second, but they were back quickly, eagerly. And then Emma palmed her breasts, touching them, holding them as if they were precious. Regina moaned into Emma's mouth. It felt like they kissed for all eternity with Emma caressing her breasts and Regina was surrounded by passion, body overcome with desire.

Emma stepped away to tear out of her own shirt. Regina groaned as disappointment settled in her stomach until she realized what happened. Regina licked her lips before she even fully took in Emma's glorious form.

"You're beautiful," Regina said. She wanted to write poetry dedicated to Emma, especially parts of Emma's body. She was more muscular than when she answered the door in her underwear a year ago. Poetry would not do her justice, but it was a start. She could already see herself addicted to Emma.

Emma grinned. "So are you." She stepped back over to Regina. She maintained eye contact with Regina as she eased her hands into Regina's yoga pants and yanked Regina to her. Regina moaned loudly. Emma smirked at her. _Does she know what I want? Is she doing this on purpose? Teasing me?_

"Can I touch you?" Regina wanted to trace the lines of Emma's taut stomach.

"Wanna take my pants off? My hands are a little busy."

Again, Emma would not have to tell her twice. Regina eased her hands to Emma's hips and rolled the sweatpants down her legs, getting a peek at black bikini briefs before they went with the sweatpants. Regina's mouth dropped open as she took in Emma's nude form. Poetry definitely would not do her justice.

"Magnificent," Regina whispered before Emma slid her yoga pants off of her.

Emma chuckled and pulled Regina closer in tugging her pants off. Regina braced herself against Emma's abdomen. Regina groaned at the feel of Emma's flesh. She wanted to run her fingers and tongue all over Emma's body. She looked up, wanting permission, hoping her eyes begged as loudly as her heart. _Tell me what to do_. Emma locked eyes with her.

"You're so fucking gorgeous." Emma caressed her cheek with her thumb.

"What do you want? Tell me," Regina begged.

Emma smiled. "Whatever you want."

Regina kissed just above Emma's navel. "Tell me."

Emma groaned and threw her head back for a moment. "You wanna use that pretty mouth?"

Regina smirked and dragged her teeth down to Emma's navel. "What do you want my mouth to do?"

"Fuck." Emma hissed. "Show me what that pretty mouth can do."

That was enough for Regina. She kissed as far up Emma's body as she could from her sitting position, delighting in the taste of Emma. It was like tasting heaven and then dragged her teeth down again. Emma bit her lip as a soft moan escaped her. Due to the sound, Regina glanced at her, but Emma had her eyes shut.

Regina licked her way back up Emma's body, having to change how she was sitting to reach Emma's breasts. She wasted no time wrapping her lips around a plump, pink nipple. Emma moaned a little louder and ran her hand through Regina's hair. She plucked the gem between her lips and Emma clutched her hair tight in one fist. The touch made Regina's eyes flutter shut and she flicked the treasure in between her lips with her tongue. Her other hand braced her against Emma, but also clutched Emma's other breast.

"Fuck, that feels good," Emma said and she gripped Regina's hair tighter, trying to pull Regina closer, while her other hand stroked Regina's scalp.

Regina smiled and switched sides. Emma caressed her hair again. Regina felt like every muscle in her relaxed as she lapped at Emma's nipple. She plucked the flesh with eager lips, pulling away for less than a second, before returning to suckle harder.

"God, Regina. I gotta get on the bed," Emma said and she stepped away. Regina whimpered, feeling deprived. Emma smiled at her. "Aw, you're pouting. You want me that much?"

Regina did not hesitate. "Yes."

Emma's smile grew as she got on the bed, sitting against the headboard with her legs spread wide open. "Then come get it."

Regina moved quickly and settled in between Emma's legs. She used her thumbs to spread Emma and her heart fluttered to see glistening evidence that Emma desired her. Satisfied and feeling oddly loved, Regina adored Emma with her tongue. Emma yelped in surprise and jerked her leg, but the sound morphed into a deep moan. Emma's hand went back to her hair, caressed her scalp, and made sure her hair stayed away from Regina's face. The simple touch made Regina want to please her forever and always.

She wrapped her lips around Emma's clit, making Emma howl. Regina pressed on Emma's thighs, opening her up more. Emma bucked against her and pushed her head a little closer before she eased up her grip. Regina liked it either way.

"Fuck, that feels damn good," Emma said, thumb stroking Regina's head. "Oh!" That was practically a squeal.

Regina doubted her efforts and bathed Emma's pleasure in wet kisses. Emma groaned and spread even wider, moving with Regina's mouth. This did nothing but encourage Regina, driving her to kiss, lick, and suck more.

Emma groaned and gritted her teeth, clasped Regina's hair into a firm fist. "Inside, please. Just one finger."

Regina took the request like she did all the others and eased a single finger into Emma. Emma was hot and pulsing around her. Regina felt like she might melt into Emma's body. _Can I stay here? Live here?_

"Fuck it. Gimme another," Emma said through a hiss as Regina pumped her finger in and out at a leisurely pace.

Regina was very happy to do so and thrust her fingers like she sought Emma's soul. Emma bucked against her, now chasing her desire. Regina made sure she did not have to go far. All too soon, Emma cried out to the ceiling and covered Regina in her essence. Regina was happy to accept, watching Emma's body flush bright red as she panted for air. A smile crept onto Emma's face as she looked at Regina through partially closed eyes. Emma ran her fingers through Regina's hair.

"Come up here," Emma said.

Regina grinned and went in for a kiss. The kiss was lazy and Regina practically laid on Emma as their lips and tongues slowly caressed each other. Feeling Emma against her, feeling the muscles and warmth, it was beyond heaven. She could not possibly deserve this, yet here it was.

Emma's hands clutched Regina's ass, squeaking, possessing. Regina bucked against her. Emma pulled away enough to smile.

"This is all fun and everything, but I meant you bring this sweet thing up here." Emma slid a finger through Regina's arousal. Regina moaned and bucked against Emma.

"You saying my mouth isn't sweet?" Regina replied.

"Your mouth is fucking magical. Now, get up here and sit on my damn face."

The order hit Regina all over, but made her throb with want. Emma needed to reposition herself and wiggled lower onto the pillows as Regina crawled up her body. Before Regina was certain she was in position, Emma grabbed her ass and yanked her down.

Regina let out a loud groan as lightning shot through her as Emma's tongue lapped at her. She could not help riding Emma's face and Emma only encouraged her, moving her through her grip on Regina's ass. She squeezed Regina's ass and sucked her clit with the perfect amount of pressure. Regina could not help crying out.

"Yes!" Regina grabbed the headboard, needing to keep her balance as Emma's tongue treated her to all sorts of exceptional laps and swirls.

As pleasure built, Regina felt a quiver in her thigh before her orgasm crashed through her. She was surprised by how intense it was, like she had been hit by a bolt of lightning. It blazed all through her, frying her in the best of ways. Once again, she did not understand how she was not a puddle. She also did not understand how she had not tipped over.

"How you doing?" Emma asked.

Regina could not find any words. She merely slid down to settle on Emma. She had never felt so sated. Was this what love and trust did when paired with a kink? She could only assume so.

Emma stroked Regina's hair with one hand while the other held Regina around the waist, pressing them closer together. "That good, huh? Agreed. Let's go to sleep." And Emma did not have to tell her twice.

-8-8-8-8-

Next time: after this, what could possibly go wrong?


	14. Because I Know It's True

I don't own these characters; Disney/ABC does.

14: Because I Know It's True

Emma and Ruby sat in the sheriff's station, scowling and rubbing their eyes. They had a meeting with the loyal Council in a few minutes and had a feeling how that would go. They had felt ignored before as individuals. Now, they could be ignored as a department.

"Why are we doing this to ourselves?" Emma asked, not sure what she meant. She should be relaxed. Last night was amazing, and not just the sex. It was the whole family atmosphere. She was part of a family. It seemed impossible. _Or too good to be true_.

"We care about the town and want to keep people safe," Ruby replied.

Emma blew out a breath and palmed her face for a moment. "There is that." Caring about the town was nothing more than a headache and was probably going to give her an ulcer. "Why does it feel like we're the only ones?"

Ruby snorted and leaned far back in her chair with her arms folded across her chest. "I think everyone cares, but in their own way. Our way just happens to be the right way."

Emma laughed. "I'm sure that's how a lot of people feel."

Ruby shrugged. "A feeling doesn't make it true."

Emma threw up a hand. "Preach."

Ruby glanced at the clock. "We should get going."

Emma's eyes rolled without any mental commands from her brain. It was just how her body reacted to the Council now. "I go late to these." They could only waste so much of her time now.

"That was fine when Regina was in charge and it probably made her all hot and bothered, but this might be the reason they're giving you a hard time."

Emma scoffed. Okay, so this was a habit from when Regina was mayor, but she had liked to be late and get on Regina's nerves. She also liked being late for the Council because it helped save her sanity. She could only listen to them being bullheaded, stubborn assholes for so long.

Emma shook her head. "I'm not changing who I am for them, like when they complain I don't show up in uniform. I don't work for them. I'm here to keep people safe and they're making that harder with every stupid power play they make."

"They are doing that. Maybe if we play nice, it'll be different."

Emma sucked her teeth. "No. I'm not playing a game to do the right thing. This town is on edge. If they're going to put themselves in charge, it's on them to prevent that."

Ruby regarded her with sad eyes for a long moment. "Oh, you poor kid. I'm not even from here and I know everything boils down to politics."

"Yeah, well, I'm not giving into that crap. I want people to feel safe, all the people, not a select few. Everybody has a right to safety and security, especially at home."

Ruby held her hands up. "You won't get any argument from me disagreeing there."

Emma frowned and tried to keep from getting riled up. "Now, why the hell can't they see it that way? Why don't they want to help everyone? Why does it have to be good for some and not for others?"

Ruby shrugged, but did not say anything else. Emma had hoped Ruby would have answers. Ruby lived in the Enchanted Forest. She knew how these people thought, but this was as much a mystery to Ruby as it was to her.

They left for the town hall after that. Ruby grabbed her deputy jacket on the way, but that was the only bit of uniform either of them except their badges. What did they need uniforms for? They were the only police in town and everyone knew them.

The Royal Council awaited them in the meeting part of the town hall. The Council had too many people, almost twenty, and did not want to admit it. They did not fit in any other room together where they would seem equal. In the meeting hall, they took the old City Council's positions and were all able to look down on people from high on their thrones. They had to add space, but they all fit and passed judgment. It made Emma more reluctant to meet with them.

"Greetings, Sheriff," Prince Thomas said. He sat with his father and that was one of the reasons the Council was so big. Everybody showed up with an heir or consort or Ladies-in-waiting for no reason. It only added to the noise. Maybe when it was just them, having a big team allowed for them to shout each other down. For her, it seemed like there was a gang of people trying to tell her what to do, but they did not make any sense and she did not feel obligated to listen.

"Hi, I just want to keep this brief. Me and the deputy don't have a lot of time." Her phone buzzed on her hip. _What fresh Hell is that?_

"Our time is precious as well," Matilda said, like she needed to one-up Emma. "So, please, proceed."

"First, you have to stop rejecting deputy choices. It's my decision. I'm the sheriff." Emma and Ruby had accepted a couple of duty applications only for the Council to butt in. "It's bad enough you keep submitting people who don't deserve the job, which is just a waste of my time, but we need more hands on deck and no one you suggested could hack it. You can't tell me who to hire."

Wesley Sax cleared his throat. "That's incorrect. We have final decision on all town matters and those applicants were undesirable."

Emma folded her arms across her chest. "You just made that rule up while we were gone after you put yourselves in charge." Regina did not even have that sort of power when the Curse was intact.

"Be that as it may," Maurice said, sitting in King George's seat more than likely because he was on the run. "We couldn't help but notice you were trying to hire former members of the Evil Queen's guards."

"Your point? That doesn't make them bad applicants," Emma replied. They were probably the best applicants she had. Unfortunately, the Council refused to accept that, refused to pay if she hired them, and the former guards were not sure it was a good idea anyway since people had been harassing them since the Curse broke. How likely were the people to believe former Black Knights were there to protect them? Not very, unfortunately, even though a bunch of them were pretty cool.

"We know the Queen offered you those names," the Blue Fairy said, shaking her head.

Sax sneered at her with hard, cold blue eyes. "We're not looking to put any of the Queen's people back into positions of power."

"You really should be arresting them," Maurice said.

"Like we told you," Edmund Kent said, as if finishing a complete order.

Emma glanced at Ruby and cocked an eyebrow. Ruby frowned. So, Ruby had probably been outright told what they did not say directly to Emma. Of course, Ruby talked one on one with Snow, so she probably had a more detailed conversation. If only Snow could have such a conversation with her daughter.

"Why would I arrest people who haven't done anything?" Emma inquired.

King Michael, Thomas' father, slammed his fist on the table. "They have done something! They're villains! They committed unspeakable acts back in the Old World."

Emma did not flinch. "But, none here. They're not criminals here." She pointed to the floor.

"But, they committed crimes," Snow chimed in. "We need to protect the people from them."

"That's not what it looks like on my end," Emma replied.

Snow scowled. "You don't know how dangerous they are. They're evil and they're always set to destroy us and all that is good."

Emma clinched her jaw. Her own mother, which meant her father, too. Of course they would stand against her. When could she ever rely on them for anything?

"I'm not arresting people over crimes that didn't happen in my jurisdiction. Hell, maybe not even on my planet. Crimes I have no evidence of. If anything, they need me more than anyone else around here. They need someone to protect them from the people. They need justice. How many former villain attacks have we had? You guys seem fine with mob justice, but not actual justice and I can't get behind that," Emma said.

"You think you know justice better than we do, jailbird?" Kent had the nerve to say. There were gasps and most of the Council looked at him with wide eyes.

Emma put her chin up. She was done being ashamed of going to prison. She was done acting like she was the problem. Something was wrong with them. "Is that how you feel?"

David glared at Edmund. "Watch what you say to the person who broke the Curse. She's the only reason we're back to ourselves."

"She didn't break it fully. Had she done that, this wouldn't even be a conversation. We'd be back home, in our own kingdoms, and everything would be in order. Maybe you do everything half-assed," Michael said, eyes locked on Emma.

It took a lot of willpower to not kick anyone's ass. Emma made a fist. "Maybe if you guys had stopped Regina and Gold back in the Enchanted Forest we wouldn't be having this conversation. Funny how many kingdoms couldn't take down one. And again, it's funny who you want arrested. Still haven't heard a single person ask about Gold. Guess his 'get out of jail free' card works fine."

Gold had been lying low since they got back from Neverland. She had not seen or heard much about him. It would seem he was reveling in Neal's presence, but she knew better than to ever count him out. There was too much going on for him to not have some sort of exit strategy.

"You haven't seemed so offended over Regina being punished as your servant, even though you're claiming people aren't committing crimes to be punished," the Blue Fairy said.

"That was her choice. She decided to surrender to you, expecting you guys to be the unreasonable, unrealistic hard-heads you definitely are. I'm not hunting down law-abiding citizens for you and putting them in jail for shits and giggles," Emma replied. Who the hell did these bastards think she was? Did they think she would just do whatever the hell they wanted? She was not their attack dog.

"Yet you're willing to take the Queen's recommendations on who to hire as deputies rather accepting one of the many applicants the Council has suggested. Couple that with the fact that you freed Regina from her shackles barely a day after she was in your custody, I don't think you have the best judgment," Matilda said.

Snorting, Emma rolled her eyes. "Says the people who refuse to let me hold any person loyal to them, despite who they hurt or property they destroy, resulting in zero arrests as the town turns into the Wild West, so hi, pot. I'm kettle."

"You will show this Council its due respect," Sax practically bellowed, like his loudness made him scary.

"No, I don't think I will. I'm not arresting people because they used to be villains back in Fairy Tale Land. That's not justice. I'm not hiring whoever you want to be deputies because I need people I can depend on, not your lackeys. I'm here to keep the town safe, the whole town," Emma replied. "Come on, Ruby." She marched out, her faith deputy one step behind her.

-8-8-8-8-

Regina made her way to Archie's office, messing with her cuffs. She put them on whenever she left the house, hoping to avoid giving anyone an excuse to bother her. It did not seem to be wise or working. She was followed the whole way by angry townies, screaming at her, insulting her, and worse. They pelted her with rocks, rotten fruit, garbage, and other things, but kept their distance.

Regina breathed a sigh of relief once she was safe inside. The door, once closed behind her, felt like a shield against the outside world. Archie's assistant, a waif of a lad, looked at her and she thought his eyes might fall out of his skull.

"That bad?" Regina asked, knowing she looked like some level of Hell. She just did not know which one.

"I hope this isn't one of your better outfits," he replied, sorrow in his tone and a pout on his glossy lips.

Regina sighed. "One of my best actually. I wasn't allowed many choices." The few outfits allotted to her had been ravaged by things like this.

"So unfair." He shook his head. "These people have nerve."

He got up from behind his desk and tried to clean Regina off, brushing off her clothes. She waved him off, knowing this was a herculean task. He did not heed her and did his best to clean her up, using his pocket square as a napkin to sweep away what he could.

She was not surprised by his actions. He was partial to her because of the Curse. In Storybrooke, he was an assistant to a respected doctor and an upstanding member of the community. He had money, a home, and a loving boyfriend. He had none of those things back in the Enchanted Forest and probably never would.

"You poor dear. Those savages," he muttered as he moved around her.

"They do have a right to be upset," Regina replied.

He scoffed. "Some, yes. Others just don't want to admit you did us a favor."

She cocked an eyebrow. "Kidnapping and brainwashing are favors?"

"Hey, I'll take that if I can eat every night, which I can here. There were times in the Enchanted Forest, I couldn't even eat the trash. And begging is hardly fruitful when you're begging poor people. Or if you beg rich people, they blame you for being poor and lazy, like they didn't inherit their wealth. So, let me be one of the few people to say thank you."

Regina found herself speechless and could only say one thing. "You're welcome."

He smiled and finished trying to make Regina presentable. He dabbed a cut she felt on her forehead, likely from a rock. He even coiffed her hair. She smiled at him as he stepped away. It was a genuine smile. It seemed like it had been such a long time since she smiled at a regular, normal human being.

He opened Archie's office door to let her in. Archie was in there, waiting for her. He offered her a smile as she stepped inside. She gave him a small smile in return while the assistant closed the door behind her. It was easier the second time. She owed that young man a thanks. She went and sat on his couch.

"Were you harmed on your way over here?" Archie asked.

"Pelted with rocks, garbage, and insults. I thought I'd be safe with these." Regina held up her wrists, jingling her irons.

He frowned a little. "I'd think it'd be more dangerous for you. It advertises you're powerless."

"It is dangerous, but like there are people who would attack me, there are people would and will defend me if things get too dangerous. The cowards know what they can and cannot get away with. Throwing rocks and garbage is hardly threatening." It was annoying, yes. But, ever since she had been put in the hospital, the mobs knew better than to do it again. She was not sure why, but she suspected. _They should worry about themselves rather than worrying over me. Their victory is about to be snatched from them with more maliciousness than mine was_.

He nodded. "So, you've said you don't wear the shackles at home."

"No, I don't. Emma and Henry don't like them."

"But, you do?"

Regina bristled. "Who said I do?"

"Well, you mention Emma and Henry, but left out yourself." He pointed that out in his stupid, calm voice, like things were no big deal.

"It doesn't need to be said. It's obvious." She sat up straight and glared at him. She was not ready to discuss this. "It's more than obvious."

He was nonplussed. "But, it is something you volunteered for."

"It was this or a cell. At least I get to be around Emma and Henry."

"You could've fought, as you always do. You have magic. Powerful magic. I've heard tales we've never truly seen the depth of your magic."

Regina waved him off. "Blue likes spreading that rumor to make people fear me even more." Of course, Blue was not the only one who talked about it. Regina never thought about how strong her magic was supposed to be. The most she had seen, or at least been able to tap into, was to cast the Dark Curse and even for that she needed to murder her father. How strong could her magic be if she could not bypass that genuine piece of horror? "I didn't want Emma or Henry to see me as a villain any more."

He did not miss a beat. "What about you?"

Scowling, she glowered at him in a way that made her shackles burn her wrists. "What about me?" She came to the office with a chip on her shoulder each and every time, but deep down always acknowledged she needed him.

He met her scowl with a small frown of his own and leaned forward a little. "You keep leaving yourself out of things. Do you still want to be a villain?"

Regina touched her collar. The cold, hard, smooth metal should have calmed her, but like the wrist bonds, felt like it burned. It felt like it could strangle her if she let it. "I never wanted…" It was not a role she meant. She hardly accepted it, even now. It just seemed like every move she ever made put her on that path, got her to that point, and there was no way to get off that road. The only thing she could do was keep moving, which only took her further into the darkness, deeper into the abyss, so the wisest move seemed to be to stop moving.

"You never wanted to be a villain. We were having sessions before, it sounded like you were unclear how you got there."

Sometimes, Regina could not figure how she got to many points in her life, but as she felt her collar under her fingertips, her thoughts were a bit clearer. "I made so many poor decisions, hoping they would make me happy. I'm trying to do better." _I can do better if I focus on what's important. I just have to remember what's important_. And with that in mind, her collar still felt like it would be the death of her somehow.

"I figured as much once you started our sessions again." He offered her another smile.

"Yes, I need to get myself together. For Emma, Henry, and myself." She gave him a nod. "They believe in me and, now, I need to believe in myself. I need to make good decisions."

"Why?"

"Because I want what we are. We've become a family. I want that. I don't want to ruin it, as I've ruined everything." She traced her collar. It would ruin everything. So, she would bury her desire and try to forget it.

He tilted his head. "Have you ruined everything?"

She almost snorted, but kept it in. "Archie, come on. Evil Queen. You've been living under my Curse."

He chuckled a bit. "Yes, but some of it is a matter of interpretation. Look at Zach. He's fully in favor of the Curse."

She nodded. "He was telling me."

"I've had many people come in, quite confused as to why they're all right with the Curse. There are so many breakdowns. I can't begin to tell you how many people this has touched in a positive way. And, yes, you were the Evil Queen, but look at your kingdom. How you came to power was wrong."

Regina's jaw clenched as her fury flared, as it tended to do whenever she thought someone challenged what she did to Leopold. "Well, Leopold was no saint." And she would never get sick of people acting like he was.

"I'm not defending him or you. But, even your attitude shows there's always more than one view of every situation. To so many, Leopold was a saint. To you, he was a demon. Who's right and who's wrong? You maintained a thriving kingdom, even as your own citizens plotted against you. You didn't ruin that."

Regina ground her teeth together for a moment. She did not even get a chance to see the growing kingdom as a success, too busy scheming on her own or tackling rebels. There were good things on her resume at the time, though. "And yet I lost my kingdom just the same. I ruined it. I will ruin this, as I ruin all things. I thought this might change things."

His face scrunched up a little. "This?"

She held up her hands, rattling her chains. "This." She twisted her nose up.

"How would the chains change things?"

"First, they gave me an excuse to be with Emma and Henry. The irons reminded me what was important. I had to, I would endure anything for them."

"And then?"

Her brow wrinkled. "And then what?"

"You said 'first.'"

She nodded and blinked. "Oh, right. Eventually, I used them as a crutch to not have to make decisions for myself. I'm a servant. I'll just let Emma tell me what to do. My life has always been smoother when following rather than trying to lead."

His forehead wrinkled. "Regina, you know that's not true in the grand scheme of things. Whenever you cede your control, you're spoken about what happens in your life. Your mother, King Leopold, Rumple. None of those were happy times. You were physically hurt less, but in all other aspects you've told me how hurt you were. Each one of those people almost destroyed you. You've said they made you lose you."

Sighing, Regina's shoulders went slack. She had lost herself, but there was a chance of finding or creating a new her. "But, it's not like that with Emma. I like it." She admitted before she thought to stop herself. She flinched.

He blinked, but to his credit, jumped right into the next question, like she had not said something outrageous and utterly insane. "Okay. Are you conflicted by that?"

Her shoulders dropped more. Well, it was out there now. "No."

He leaned in a little, like he needed to study her further. "But, you are conflicted." A statement. A true statement.

"A secret will always destroy me when revealed." Another true statement.

"You think that if Emma finds out about this she'll distance herself from you?"

She glared at him, but it was hardly anything annoyance and that was directed at herself more than him. She rubbed her arm, feeling disquieted in her own skin. _Who was she now? Who was this person?_ "Wouldn't she? She's… good." _Good at ordering you around, without even realizing it most of the time_.

"Regina, you've trusted Emma with not only yourself, but with your son. You need to tell her what that means. I understand it's scary to put yourself out there, but you trust her."

The idea made Regina's stomach turn and she swallowed down bile trying to escape her throat. "I can't tell her."

"You trust her with you and your son, but not the truth?"

Regina dropped her head along with her heart. "The truth is not kind." It never had been. The truth killed Daniel. The truth got her labeled as the Evil Queen, when she killed Leopold for how he treated her, like a possession, while everyone else thought he was the peak of goodness. The truth killed her mother. The truth was nothing more than destruction.

"It's not, but I think you and Emma both understand that. You also understand each other, which is why even when you hated each other, you were unable to stay away. Besides, wouldn't it be best to know if this person you've given yourself to wants to carry your weight?"

Regina snorted through her nose. If she could have, she would have breathed out flames. "Spoken like a person who's never been thrown away."

He did not even flinch. "Regina, we both know this isn't about me."

Her face twitched. "You just want to watch me burn everything around me."

"You know that's not true. I only want to help. You know I'm one of the people who isn't angry over the Curse. It's nice not to be a cricket." His eyes sparkled as he smiled at her.

Regina chuckled and glanced away for a moment. "I'll bet. I still think this is horrible advice."

"Because you're scared. You know you'll feel better once you say something. Tell me I'm wrong."

She opened her mouth, ready to call him on it, but they both knew she would be lying. It felt good when she told Emma how she felt. It worked out. She had been scared, weighed down by not saying anything. Maybe it was time to lighten her load. Maybe it would not be so bad.

"Emma seems to like telling me what to do," Regina said in a low voice.

"Maybe have a conversation with her then." Doctor Hopper's cheeks were flushed. Regina held in a laugh.

-8-8-8-8-

Emma could not wait to go to bed. Tense did not begin to cover it. After the meeting with the Council, she had to deal with a literal fire, the bare bones of a fire department trying to put it out, and the arrogance of the arsonist to stick around to watch the pizza shop burn to the ground. She was so confident she would beat the wrap, she had smirked the whole way to jail. Less than an hour later, Council members were calling for her release. The pizza shop was owned by a villain and too many Lost Boys hung out there for "anyone to feel comfortable," according to Edmund Kent, parroting the words of the damn arsonist. Emma had to resist the urge to break her face as she walked out of the sheriff's office.

There were other acts of violence and vandalism and Emma felt like they could not stop it. Things were crumbling around people, around her. The fire department could not keep up as they had lost most of their people, including the chief, as they were bad guys in some way. It was like Storybrooke was now Arkam Asylum and the inmates were running the place. Innocent people were hurt, property was damaged, and the goddamn people in charge were letting it happen. She wanted to just make it all better, but it was impossible.

It did not help that she had run into more than her fair share of distressed people today. She literally had to talk a woman off of a ledge. She and Ruby had to find a place for several squatters who were living in an abandoned store and they were all under the age ten. Thankfully, a school teacher was happy to hold them, along with a handful of other abandoned kids. Who the fuck abandoned kids?

Emma swallowed all of her anger the moment she got home. She just wanted to be happy at home. Instead, she felt like she was going to fly apart at the seams. So, she went to bed early. Maybe the next day would bring different, better things.

"Emma, could we maybe talk?" Regina asked as she came into the bedroom.

Emma sighed. She did not need another problem. She really did not. She wanted to take a shower and go to bed and never get out of bed.

"Is it about how I cut Henry off when he was complaining about his teacher?" Emma had not meant it, but she did not want to hear about Henry moaning over a teacher doing her job, especially when she did not need to. He needed to not call her about stuff like that when she was out in the field, too, which she told him. He was bitching and moaning over the teacher using the day to teach the students how to knit to show them how she remained calm. Henry had the gall to think it was a waste of time, said as much, and then called her to try to get validation for that.

Regina waved that off. "No. He needed to be shut down on that. He seems to forget the stress his school is under, which I think is a good thing, though. The school is doing so much to make things seem normal."

"Then what do you want to talk about? I kinda just wanna hold you and fall asleep." Emma needed to forget today was a thing.

Regina smiled softy. That was the right thing to say. It was nice to know she could at least say the right thing to Regina.

"Well, that can definitely still happen if you let me say this," Regina said.

Emma shrugged and sat down on the edge of the bed. "All right. Hit me, but not really. I doubt I could take one of your punches right now." She grinned at Regina.

Regina chuckled a little, but it sounded forced. Emma's heart leaped into her throat. Was Regina about to tell her something to further ruin her day? _Well, that's my luck_. _What if she's leaving? This is too much and she'll take Henry and I'll be here in Crazyville alone_.

"I know you've suspected I have other reasons for wearing the collar than I've stated," Regina said.

Emma threw up her hands a little while her heart continued to beat a mile-a-minute. While it did not seem like it was what she feared, it always could take a turn. This was Regina, after all. "You're not that hard to read. So, what's the deal?"

Regina took a deep breath. "I wear it because I like the idea of belonging to you. I like when you give me orders, even if they don't sound like orders. I like… well, I just like being yours and you controlling me."

Emma had expected a lot of explanations. None of them were that one, though. She never would have thought Regina could tell such a lie with a straight face. Yes, she was a practiced liar, but this was way beyond her usual lie. What the hell was Regina doing? She did not need this crap right now.

"What the hell are you playing at?" Emma glared at Regina wanting to wear her down already.

"Playing at?" Regina had the nerve to look confused.

"Yeah!" She shot up from her seat. "Is that what this whole thing has been, some game? Now, you're moving on to the next phase of your scheme to see how stupid I am or something? You wanna fuck with me psychologically? I don't need this shit! I almost had a woman jump from a five story building and now you're trying to yank away the rest of my sanity? You think I'm that fucking stupid?" Emma's face was already red from screaming. Did everyone think she was just an idiot? Did she have "asshole" written across her forehead or something?

Regina flinched. "I'm confessing a personal secret to you."

"Oh, bullshit! You killed your fucking husband for your autonomy, but you're just going to give it to me?" Emma scoffed. Really, how stupid did Regina think she was? _God, that stupid Council was right. She's trying to use me, trying to get me to let my guard down, so she can fuck shit up again_. Well, she miscalculated. Emma would never mistake herself to be so important that Regina would actually give her control over her.

"I trust you," Regina said through gritted teeth.

Emma scoffed. "Yeah, so you say. But, nobody ever actually trusts me. I'm a known fuck-up! We both know this is another trick to try to get control of Storybrooke. You got me to let my guard down. You got me to trust you—"

Regina's eyes burned with rage. "Obviously not! If you trusted me at all we'd be having a different conversation, but you see me like everyone else. I'm nothing more than the Evil Queen. A villain and I always will be."

"Not like you've ever tried to prove anybody wrong."

Regina's jaw twitched. "You know what, you're right. I can only ever be a villain." She went to the door.

"Where the hell do you think you're going?" Emma stepped closer. She would need to tackle Regina if she made a move for the shackle keys. She could not let Regina get free from her collar to wreak havoc all over town.

"Just fetching my cot. After all, this is my punishment for being a villain." Regina went across the hall and retrieved her cot.

"So, you're going to sleep on this cot now? Such bullshit." There was no way Regina would sleep on that cot now that her plot was uncovered. Emma prepared for an attack that did not come, yet anyway.

Regina did not say anything. She set up the cot and then went to the closet. She grabbed the chain that had been meant to keep her attached to the wall.

"Regina, seriously?" Emma did not buy this shit for one second. Regina was about to do something.

Regina did not reply. Next, she went to the nightstand and grabbed her wrist irons. She put them on and then chained herself to the fireplace. Emma watched until Regina laid down.

"Really? This is bullshit," Emma said. Regina was up to something. She had to be. It was the only thing that made sense.

Regina put the cover over her head. Emma was not sure what to do and stared at Regina for a long time. Regina was up to something, but Emma was not sure what. She would not let Regina get the better of her, though.

-8-8-8-8-

Next time: Regina might go out of her way to prove Emma right.


	15. Impossible to Feign

I don't own these characters; Disney/ABC does.

15: Impossible to Feign

Regina was not sure when she fell asleep, busy seething through the night. She woke up, ready to make breakfast like a good little prisoner of war, but found that impossible. She was chained to the damn wall, after all. This was stupid to do in hindsight, but it was better she do it than Emma. There was only so much distrust and betrayal she could take. If Emma had been the one to do it, Regina was not sure what she would have done, but it probably would have involved blowing up the house.

Now, she had time to seethe, but found she did not have the energy. Why bother? This was probably still the best she had been in life because she had her son and he loved her again. Why ask for more? She did not deserve it. She was a villain. So much a villain even Emma, the person who thought she was worth saving, did not think she was worthy of trusting, of believing in.

She wanted to be angry with Doctor Hopper. Why had she listened to him? There was no reason for her to tell Emma, except that was not true. Emma deserved the truth. Regina deserved the truth and she got it.

She felt better in a way. She was unburdened. Yes, she lost Emma as she expected, but at least she had an answer. There was no more looming horror. Now, she could properly plan for her future.

Was there a future, though? It was not like she, Emma, and Henry could still be a family. And, yes, while Henry might love her, if things came down to a choice, she knew Emma would win. How would she be able to take watching Emma and Henry be a family with someone else? Hook? Neal? Some other jackass? The very idea made her throat burn as bile rushed into her mouth. She swallowed it down with her pain and suffering.

"You up?" Emma asked from her space on her bed.

"If you unchain me, I can start breakfast," Regina replied.

"Silly to chain yourself up." Her voice tried to make it seem like everything was normal, like they were where they were supposed to be.

Regina would not pretend things were fine. "Yes, because you were eager to share a space with me as I remained empowered and probably plotting against you?"

Emma grunted. "I could take you."

"I'm sure, especially since you've done so well with your few magic lessons." Regina rolled her eyes. "Now, if you would unlock me, so I can get started on today's chores?"

"Oh, cut the shit, Regina. We both know you're not a servant." Emma climbed off of the bed.

Regina was not sure what that meant and did not engage. There was no reason to do so. She understood where she stood with Emma. A villain.

"The silent treatment? Real mature." Emma moved Regina's hair out of the way to unlock the chain. The second she was free, Regina was up and on the move. "Regina." Emma grabbed her by the wrist.

Regina yanked her body from Emma's hold. While her body melted at Emma's touch and control, her mind now refused. Screw Emma. Screw trust. _What did I expect from the offspring of Show White and her pretender? What did I expect from my own damned life?_

"Regina," Emma said for what felt like the millionth time and it did not sound good.

"I'll thank you to not touch me unless absolutely necessary," Regina said before leaving the room. She would clean up the cot when Emma was gone.

She rushed to the kitchen. She needed to do something, to occupy her mind, to help calm herself down. She needed to be able to treat Emma with some respect to avoid losing Henry. She also wanted to be calm when Henry came down, so he would not notice anything was wrong.

Regina snorted. "Who am I kidding?" Henry would notice and he would probably side with Emma. He always sided with Emma, with the heroes, and no matter what Regina did she would always be a villain.

Sniffling, Regina tried not to think about how this was the beginning of the end. Henry had his birth parents. He had grandparents who always won. He would not need her, would not want her. This would play out the way it had always been destined to. She could not avoid that, could not hold it off any longer. She could do a lot of things, but she could not cheat Fate.

"Morning, Mom," Henry said and the sound of his voice made her jump.

"Henry, I didn't hear you come down," Regina stated the obvious.

He nodded. "You seemed pretty interested in the eggs."

"I just want to make sure I don't burn them."

"You never burn the eggs."

"In front of you, no."

He seemed to accept that and it took less than a minute for her to put food in front of him to keep him from asking too many questions. Scrambled eggs with cheese, toast, and sliced sausage. Emma came down shortly after and Regina put food in front of her. She stared at the plate.

"I'll get something on the way to work," Emma said as she pushed away from the counter, like she believed Regina tampered with the meal. And why would she not think that? Regina was a villain.

Henry looked up with a little bit of toast on the side of his mouth. "What? You gotta have some of this. It's better than anything you can get outside."

"I need to get going." Emma made her way to the front door.

Henry pushed away from the counter, chasing his hero, abandoning his plate. "Wait for me. Why are you leaving early?"

"You're coming, too."

"Why am I coming, too?"

Regina ground her teeth together as Henry grabbed his book bag by the door. He was leaving early because Emma did not trust her alone with her own son, even though Henry was everything. Henry would always be everything. If Henry knew what Emma thought, he would probably agree with her actions, though. He shouldered his bag and barely spared Regina a glance.

"Bye, Mom!" Henry called.

"Bye." It might eventually be permanent. Maybe Emma was going to speak to her parents. Maybe it was time for her execution. What was the point of living anymore? She was going to lose Henry. She had already lost Emma, if she had ever had her. "Might be time to get my affairs in order."

Regina moved to clean up and considered what she needed to do in the next few days. It would not take long for her to set things in order, but she wanted to do one last thing. Might as well go out like a villain. Maybe she could salvage victory for others.

-8-8-8-8-

"Why are we leaving so early?" Henry asked as he trailed behind Emma.

Emma shook her head. She could not tell him that his mother was probably plotting something, something big. It would break his heart. Henry thought Regina had turned over a new leaf, had wanted the same things he wanted. How could Regina do this to him? Henry was supposed to be everything and Regina was willing to throw him away for what? To get Storybrooke back? To finally win? Sounded about right for Regina.

Well, it sounded right for Old Regina. The Regina she first met when she came to Storybrooke. The Regina who exposed her criminal record, who framed Mary Margaret for murder, and would do anything to save her curse. Apparently that Regina was alive and well. She was a fool to think otherwise.

"Hey, why are you ignoring me?" Henry grabbed her by the hand and yanked.

Emma stopped and pulled her hand back. "I'm in a rush right now, kid. I need to get down to the station. You know this place is crazy."

"Then why did I have to leave early? I can get to school on my own." He had done it a couple of times recently. It was not so much that the town was safe, but that the mob insanity tended to happen in the downtown area or commercial areas. Homes were no longer targets, but then again, there were gangs roaming around, too, so it probably was not the safest to let him walk to school or anything.

She looked at him, not wanting to seem stern, but definitely fed up. She was fed up with this whole day and it only just started. "Henry, sometimes, you should just do stuff and not ask so many questions."

He folded his arms across his chest. "Have you met my mom?"

His mom who claimed she liked when Emma ordered her around, even though she had murdered for her independence. _How stupid does Regina think I am?_ Well, she was pretty stupid, considering she bought into Regina's act until it got too ridiculous. _This is what happens when you just want someone to want you_. Well, she could not afford to be that stupid, not when she had a son to worry about, not when she was trying to hold her home together.

"Yeah, I have, which is why I need you to not ask questions," Emma replied.

His mouth twisted up. "Does this have to do with Mom? Are you two fighting?"

"What? No! Why would you say that?" No need to ruin his day yet.

He snorted. "Because we left without breakfast, even though breakfast was right there, and you two didn't really talk. Is it because Mom put the wrist irons back on? That's weird."

Emma's jaw tensed for a second. "Yeah, this is all weird. Let's get going."

"Not making this less weird."

Emma had no doubt that was the case, but did not respond. She went to her car with Henry right behind her. He stared at her with intensity for the short trip to his school, but he did not say anything. It was like he was trying to will her to talk about things. She did not fold.

"Have a good day," Emma said as he got out of the car.

"I will if you make up with Mom," he replied.

Emma opened her mouth, but he closed the door before she could respond. Sighing, she resisted the urge to punch the steering wheel. Instead, she slammed her forehead into the wheel. What a fucking mess. She glanced up and noticed some of the kids looking at her. She drove off and somehow resisted the temptation to drive all the way to Boston.

She pulled up to the station and caught a glance inside. Snow and David were in there. She groaned. She did not have the will to deal with them, but she had to go to work. She could not just leave, even though she really wanted to. She could not leave Henry now. She could not leave town. This place was home. _Of course, I could just pick Henry up from school and drive until we run out of gas_. He would never go for it, though. Again, this place was home.

"Is home always this bad?" Emma's stomach hurt and it had nothing to do with not eating breakfast. Every place she had ever thought of as home left her twisted in a knot, but this was new. It was like her body wanted to collapse in on itself and then throw itself up. Why did she think this was worth it? _Henry is everything_ echoed through her mind.

Emma got out of the car. She would deal with her parents and then go get some donuts, and maybe beer. Or stronger. Was the Rabbit Hole open yet?

Upon entering the station, three sets of wide eyes fell on Emma. They were not expecting her so early. Maybe they plotted, as Regina plotted. Was she the only one trying to hold the town together? Did it matter? No one seemed to be with her, just biding their time to do what everyone did. Hell, even Henry was geared up to leave her behind, despite what he said. He had his mighty Dad, after all. _You could turn around, drive far, far away, and never look back_. Except, she could not.

"Emma, good thing you're here," Ruby said.

Emma arched an eyebrow. "Oh?"

"Yeah, they want us to start rounding up the villains like right now," Ruby replied.

Emma stared at her parents. "We've gone through this. I'm not arresting people who didn't do anything."

"There's news the villains are plotting something, so you have to do something about it before they start a whole new war," David said.

"How do you know they're plotting something and what 'something'? Doing a vague _something_ isn't against the law," Emma replied.

Snow stepped forward. "We've heard chatter that the villains are gathering to organize. They more than likely plotting to destroy the town."

"How do you know they're going to destroy the town?" Emma asked, holding in a tired sigh. Why would they want to destroy the town? It was not like the villains had anywhere to go if they wrecked the place.

"Because they're villains, Emma." David stepped forward now and threw his hands up like he was fed up with her. "This is what they do. I know you don't want to believe that. You want to think they're content with their lives here, but they don't know how to be content. They only know how to spread misery and terror and take things that aren't theirs."

Emma sighed. It sounded like the Royal Council to her. They had taken the town without asking anyone and wanted to spread misery to people just living their lives. She could not say, though, or they would swear she was brainwashed by Regina. She was sick of that damn argument, like she was not allowed a free thought different from theirs.

"How did you find out about this meeting?" Emma asked. She was unimpressed when her parents glanced at each other. "Lemme guess, Gold." Why the hell did they keep listening to him?

"Not Gold. Neal," Snow said.

Emma threw her hands up. "Oh, yeah, that makes it so much better. What the fuck? Gold is the ultimate villain and Neal's a con artist. I don't understand why you continue to do shit for or with him."

"We don't trust Gold. We just don't have a way to contain him yet," David said.

"I hear iron works pretty well," Emma replied. She could not figure out why they did not iron shackle Gold. Why was that so hard? Did they need a special spell like with Regina? Why did Regina need a special spell anyway?

"Look, Emma, this didn't come from Gold. It came from Neal and I hear you're letting Henry see him, so that must mean something, right?" Snow asked.

"It means I'm letting Henry learn on his own that his father is worthless." Emma threw her hands up once more. "What the fuck is wrong with you?" Apparently, they were all mad here and she probably was right there with them, but had not figured it out. _No, I have to be mad because I'm still fucking here_. Henry would probably never learn his father was worthless since she could not get it through her thick skull that her parents were the same.

Everyone gasped. "Emma!"

"What? Can we not act like I'm the problem? You want me to arrest people who haven't done anything. So, seriously, what the fuck is wrong with you?" she said with even more conviction. It felt good to ask. _I'm not the problem. They're the problem. I'm not the problem_.

"Emma, calm down," Ruby said.

"No, fuck that." Emma glared at David and pointed a rigid finger at him. "You wanted to be rid of me so badly you basically gave me away to Hook." Thank whatever he left her alone for now, probably scared Ruby would eat him if he did not stop making a pest of himself.

"Emma, that's not—" David tried to say, but she did not bother to let him finish.

Emma turned her attention to Snow and pointed at her. "You still want me to be with an overgrown man-child who let me take the wrap for his crime, let me go to fucking prison. None of you give a damn about me or what the fuck I've been through. You don't give a fuck about the people in this town either. You're entirely selfish assholes, just want me to do what you want. You don't care about me as a person any more than you care about those villains as people. You think you know about everything and you claim you're heroes, but you only care about you." Emma rushed the door. Why the hell did she think she could have anything?

She jumped into car and went to find out about this stupid villain gathering. For all she knew the villains were planning to blow up the stupid town and she was tempted to let them. Fuck home, fuck these people, and fuck her parents.

-8-8-8-8-

Regina had to work hard to make it to the bistro _The Lady in Gray_. It had seen better days, much like she had. She had been stalked and used as target practice until she went into the woods. It was not as many people as it would have been a few days ago. In the woods, she had to avoid campsites. It seemed there were people living in the woods now. She was not sure if that was voluntary or not and did not stop to ask. From there she made it to the restaurant, albeit worse for wear. When she stepped inside, she got plenty of stares from the few dozen people there.

"My god, Regina, did you crawl here?" Nuri Aftab, the fire chief, asked as he fell to her side. He brushed leaves and twigs from her shoulders and arms. People moved to stand at his back, possibly ready to help when he was done or just rubberneck the situation.

Regina waved him away. "I'm fine. It's just…" She held up her wrists. "I'm a damn walking target."

"You're not the only one and we don't even have those," Blanca Espanto, one of the bistro's two owners, said, as she approached. She was decked out in every color of the rainbow from her sundress, to her hat, shoes, and dainty scarf. "We've had way more people than I like trying to burn our little slice of heaven to the ground. It's enough to make you want to kidnap men and torture them to death… if one were so inclined to that sort of thing anyway." Her blue eyes twinkled.

Regina was well aware. "You should defend yourselves. The Sheriff would understand."

Blanca gave her a skeptical half-smirk. "Yeah, we know all about your sheriff. She's letting go all the violent mobsters and keeping you as a pet."

"I volunteered for this!" Regina roared and threw up her hands. She did not care what was happening around her, none of these people would disrespect her like that. "It was the only way to keep my son." Even now, as Emma tore her heart out and stomped on it, she could not stand for anyone to think ill of her. Emma had problems, but she was good and tried to be fair. If she were not, she would have left this wretched place as soon as she realized Storybrooke was a lost cause thanks to the Council.

"Funny how Rumple and his brat are able to see the boy with no trouble," Blanca said with a sniff.

Regina frowned. "Rumple was around my son?" Time to reassess her plan if that was the case. Rumple would have to die before she did. She would not leave him to ruin Henry.

"Forgive my dearest, Your Majesty," Melanie Espanto said as she glided over, also wearing all colors of the rainbow. She wrapped her arm around Blanca's waist and pulled her close. "She only speaks of rumors. We know Henry has been around with that cad Neal, who has been seen in and out of his father's shop. There's something afoot."

Regina sighed. "Isn't it always?" Hopefully, Emma would be able to handle it… or smart enough to get out of town before it all blew up.

"And somehow it'll be that damn imp's fault, but he'll come out of it fresh as a daisy." Nuri growled, blowing smoke through his nose. They all knew that to be true.

Melanie waved a scolding hand at him. "Careful. We already had Adan almost burn the place down venting his anger. What is with you fire types?"

"They're hotheads, my love," Blanca replied.

Nuri's expression fell into a deadpan. "Very funny. We have more important things to discuss, though. Adan was having a melt down for a reason, after all. The imp is plotting, the so-called heroes are plotting, the royals are plotting, and we're standing around trying to figure out how to live our everyday boring little lives that no one's intent on letting us have."

"And what's your plan? Start up before he does? Beat out the royals? Challenge the heroes?" Regina looked around at the room pull of "bad guys." She scoffed. "That's all the excuse they'll need to lock every so-called villain up."

"Well, if we don't do something, they'll let the masses continue to burn down our businesses and homes. Do you know how many of us have had to house one another?" Nuri asked.

"I'm sure this is worse than you're making it sound. I know things are bad. You have to figure out how to work it in your favor," Regina replied. It had to be good several villains were in the medical profession, as they had to have needed patching up from each other since this whole affair started.

Melanie sighed and shook her head. "We just want to be left in peace."

"But, it'll never happen," Nuri said. "They've already relieved me of my position and made me take every firefighter with me, like Adan. The skeleton crew left were all members of Kent's circle. Word on the inside is the Council has the nerve to be calling for our heads, like we're the problem right now." He pressed his massive hand to his barrel chest.

"They've relieved you of your position?" Regina arched an eyebrow. "Were you too effective?" Since the Curse had a sense of humor, the town's firefighters all had fire-based powers. When magic returned, it had to be easy for them to put fires out as almost all of them controlled fire, creating it, dousing it, and such.

Nuri shrugged massive shoulders. "I think they'd prefer I start some fires. Adan's looking to spread lava all over the place. We had to stop him from raising a volcano when they fired us all."

"So, you're thinking of war?" Regina asked. It was like they never learned! War was not the answer. They all tried that in some form and it never worked.

"The thought crossed our minds. Better to go out fighting and all that," Morgan said as she approached the group, practically floating over. She draped herself on Regina, her long, blood red hair spilling over both of their shoulders. Morgan seemed to waft about her like mist. "Didn't you think so once?" She ran a cold finger down Regina's cheek.

Regina looked at Morgan through the corner of her eye. It was tempting with Morgan by her side. She had not had that power the first time. She owed Morgan so much, but it would not help for them to fall into old habits. "I didn't have a son then. I can't have him caught in a war. There is another way."

"The Evil Queen not down for murder, mayhem, and mischief? You've truly been collared," Morgan said with a smirk. She reached out to run a finger along the collar, but Regina moved. That collar was not for her.

Regina held up her hand. "No. But, again, I have a son I want to protect. Besides, we know how a war ends, how they always end. We lose." She motioned around the room. Every entity in the room always lost at the end of the day.

"Well, with that defeatist attitude." Blanca rolled her eyes. "I have very little desire to return to a life of haunting cemeteries. I feel no joy in tormenting people. It's not actually a life."

"Well, next time, don't die in a cemetery," Nuri replied.

Blanca blinked. "I was cursed, you fool. How could I be dead if I'm here talking to you? There are no zombies, ghouls, or ghosts in Storybrooke thanks to no magic."

Melanie sighed. "Thankfully. I, too, have little desire to be alone, haunting old roads, and stealing dishonest men I have no use for. No, I don't want to be cursed again, not with that one anyway."

Regina held up a finger. "Then let's not make the same mistakes as we have in the past. We always fight the last war. We have to get ahead of this thing." All eyes were on her, beyond the group she spoke with, but everyone watched her and listened. "The heroes made a move we didn't see coming. They didn't play by the rules. What if we play by the rules?"

Morgan reached over and twisted a lock of Regina's hair. "I feel deviousness from you. Do tell."

"They want the Old World back, but we want the New and we're not alone. They've put themselves in power, but here power to the people. They want to arrest you, silence you, but you can rise up in protest. It's not against the law. Use the rules against them. They think they're above the law, but no one's above the law," Regina said. If they organized the right way, they could get the people of Storybrooke behind them and have a bloodless revolution.

"And you think other people will stand with us?" Blanca asked.

She thought of Archie and his assistant, Zach. "I'm sure of it."

"Okay, we protest and then?" Nuri asked.

"Demand a vote beheld. Demand representation. Demand they follow the law like everyone else. Get the people with you. They can't rule those who refuse to be ruled. Again, play by the rules. See what happens." Regina shrugged. It was worth a shot.

"And where will you be as we play by the rules?" Morgan asked. "Shackled to the bed?"

Regina stepped away. "I'll be where I should've been a long time ago." How long had she been on borrowed time? Since the execution? The murder of her husband? Crossing her mother? Being born to her mother?

Morgan scowled and pushed back into Regina's face. "Think of your son." She reached out, trying to touch Regina.

Scowling, Regina remained out of Morgan's reach. "Oh, believe me, I have. I've thought of him. I've thought you all. I make promises that can't be kept. I've done no good for anyone, not even you. I mean, look at our victory." She threw her hands out. "Even this was snatched from us. I'm nothing more than poison, to people, to causes, to lives. I wish you luck." She turned to leave, but Morgan grabbed her hand. Nuri was the one who spoke.

"Regina, you don't have to give up," he said.

"There's nothing left for me to fight for," she replied.

"Bullshit! There's still this town, your town! _Our_ town!" Blanca said, beating her chest.

"Don't do this, Regina. You know we'd stand with you until the end. I'll stand with you beyond that," Morgan said and she gave Regina's hand a squeeze.

"Stand with Henry. Protect my son, please," Regina replied. Once Morgan tried to protect her and she did not let Morgan. Hopefully, things would be different with Henry.

"With my life, as if he were my own. Well, no better than my own, obviously. Better than I've protected you. The damned imp, Snow White, even the mob that almost killed you. Henry will get better." Morgan stared her deep in the eye. "He will get better."

"You didn't fail me. I left you when you tried to stop me from returning to Rumple all those years ago. No one could talk me out of things with Snow White. Maleficent died trying, after all. It's time for this to end," Regina said with conviction. It was time. This needed to be over.

"It can end a different way," Melanie replied in a soft, almost pleading tone.

Regina shook her head. She was done fighting for the town, done fighting Snow White, and done scraping for a family who did not want her. These villains had a chance. Maybe outside of their stories, they could win. This world was full of long shots, but she was done.

-8-8-8-8-

Emma's nostrils flared as she watched Regina leave _The Lady in Gray_. She was across the street, staking the place out. So, it all was a plot. Regina was up to something along with the tons of villains in town. _Damn them all for being right_. Instead of continuing her job, Emma moved to confront Regina, driving home to meet Regina there.

She made it to the house before Regina and started around the place. It was an entire lie. It was all part of some terrible scheme for Regina to finally win. Everyone tried to warn her and she stood up for Regina, refusing to believe them, putting her faith in Regina. What a fool she was! Well, never again. Still, she put her fist through the wall and paced.

"Why the hell can't I have any fucking thing?" Emma screamed and flipped the coffee table. Magazines and papers went flying while the table ended up on edge, leaning against the sofa.

She tore through the living room, ripping the television off the wall, throwing books from the shelves, and breaking everything else she could get her hands on. It was like she was possessed by the Tasmanian Devil. She missed Regina coming through the door. She glared at Regina, standing at the opening of the living room.

"Looks like you should've had breakfast this morning," Regina said.

"So you can get your second chance to poison me?" Emma huffed, trying to catch her breath. Hair hung in her face and her clothes stuck to her thanks to a sweat she worked up.

Regina waved her off. "Since that's your fear, you can return me to the Council."

Emma, still panting, wiped her hair from her eyes. "Excuse me?"

"My presence has caused you nothing but pain. You and Henry. The two people I never want to hurt and I've done you both great harm. I've realized the only way to stop hurting you and to stop being the villain is to be gone." Regina had the nerve to shrug, like that was that.

Emma scoffed as she stood up straight, wanting to look strong, even though she felt powerless. She threw her shoulders back. "Oh, so I give you to them and what, you destroy them all as they try to put you under the hospital? What's your play, Regina?" What the hell was going on?

Regina did not waver, staring right back at Emma. "My play is to go out on my own terms, as it's always been. You wouldn't let me die as Regina and I don't know how to live as her at this point. So, take me to the Council."

Scowling, Emma pointed a threatening finger at Regina. "No, tell me what the hell were you doing meeting with the villains?"

Regina's nostrils flared. "You're following me?"

"No, I had no idea you'd be there. The Council thinks the villains are up to something and they think you're up to something. Looks like they're right. What the hell are you planning?" Emma stepped over, staring Regina down. She expected to see fire in Regina's eyes. Instead, deep brown glistened with what could have been sorrow.

Regina sighed and reached out, caressing Emma's cheek. Emma yanked away. Regina gave her a sad smile.

"You want to know what I'm planning?" Regina walked around Emma and went to the bookshelf. There were a couple of books that survived the redecoration. She pulled out a thick book and opened it. She pulled out two envelopes and put the book back. She turned back to Emma. "One for you. One for Henry. Do you want to read it now to call me a liar to my face?"

"You are a liar. This whole fucking thing has been a lie!" Emma tossed her arms out to either side. "You've been plotting from the start. From the chains to the servant to everything! It's all a lie! Everything!" Emma's chest hurt and she could not get enough air into her lungs. It took too much energy to stand up. She fell to her knees and sobbed. "It's all a lie."

Regina dropped to her side and held her. Emma clutched Regina around the waist and cried like never before, soaking Regina's shirt within seconds. Why was it all a lie? It was everything she ever wanted, but it was beyond betrayal. Everything around her was an illusion. Every movement around her was false. Every person was a myth. This was the worst, like her own personal Hell, torturing, crushing, killing her with each second that passed.

"It's not all a lie, Emma. I do love you. I enjoyed our moments as a family. There was no lie on my side. I really wanted to stop being your villain," Regina said, running her hand through Emma's hair. It was such a soft touch, comforting, loving almost.

Emma shook her head in Regina's chest. "Then why were you at that meeting?"

Regina sighed, slumping against Emma. "Nothing I say will matter because you think I'm a liar. You say you love me, but you don't trust me. You don't love me."

Emma sniffled. "How can I trust anything here? It's all an illusion." An illusion that ripped out everything inside of her, took chunks of her flesh and bone, left her shell, and still wanted more. "This… everything… nothing… all of it isn't real. Hell, I'm not real. You're not real. None of this is real." And maybe that hurt the worse. Parents, son, loved ones, everything she ever wanted and it just was not real. It was more than being a lie. It was nothing.

Regina rubbed her back as well as caressing her head. "This is bigger than me. I should've guessed. Our problems always are. You and I are always a sum of our entire lives. Emma, calm down and look at me without emotion, but with your powers. Your innate superpower."

Emma managed a breath, but it turned into a cough. It took a couple of tries to have a normal breath. That was enough to help her sit up. Regina held both her hands and made simple circles with her thumbs over the center of Emma's wrists. It eased an ache in her ribs. It felt like no time and all eternity Emma could take a breath and it did not hurt. She looked into Regina's eyes.

"My power doesn't always work," Emma said with a hiccup.

"No, it does work. You just don't always trust it. Ask me."

Emma sniffled and then took another deep breath. She slowly exhaled and felt as calm as she thought she would for right now. "Are you really planning to kill yourself?"

"That's what you lead with!" Regina dropped her hands and glared at her.

"You pulled letters out of a book, Regina. One for Henry." What was she supposed to think?

Regina dropped her head. "I was merely going to suggest my execution."

"So, yes." Emma took another breath. "Why?"

And Regina tilted her head, regarding Emma as if she were utterly out of her mind. "Why? Because I'm tired of everything crumbling in my fingers like wet sand in the waves. I was able to see I'd be happy in this life. I was content. I know that's fleeting, but I can't imagine dragging on without you, without Henry."

"You still have Henry."

Regina shook her head. "He has Neal. He has you. I've been superfluous for a time now."

Emma grabbed Regina's hands and yanked Regina a little closer. "That's just crazy! You're his mother! You're not some extra toe! He loves you."

Regina swallowed so hard Emma could hear it. "Yes, but he loves you, Neal, and the idea of birth parents."

Emma curled her lip. "Yeah, they're not all they're cracked up to be, but in my experience no parents are great. But, you've got something, Regina. You could be great. But, you can't abandon him."

Regina shook her head. "He won't miss me."

"Of course he will! And…" Emma sighed. "I'd miss you." Why run from the truth? She cared about Regina, which was why finding out Regina was plotting hurt so much.

A sad, hollow laugh came from Regina. "No, you wouldn't. You think I lied to you. You once made me believe I could never lie to you. I thought that to be true. I also thought I could trust myself to you, but as you said it's all a lie." Tears caught in Regina's eyes and her breath hitched in her chest. "Everything I held dear was a lie and I can only be a villain. So, why should I stay? Why should I not… why should I not…" And now Regina burst into tears.

Now, it was Emma's turn to do the holding. She blanketed Regina as best she could, wanting to protect Regina from all the world's ills even now. Regina cried softly, like it was a forbidden act. But, then again, it was a forbidden act for Regina. Who could she ever cry to, after all?

"I can't understand why you would give yourself to me. I'm not worth it. I'm not worth you," Emma said. "It only makes sense for it to be a scheme. You've been controlled all your life. You only want to be free, even now going to your execution. Why would you want me to order you around? Me of all people, too. My parents don't want me. Henry doesn't want me, but you want me? You not only want me, but you'd give me power over you? Please."

Regina looked her in the eye. It broke Emma's heart to know she put those tears there. She wanted to make this better, make this right, but she did not know how. Maybe she was not capable of making it right, of making anything right. She wiped away some tears, only for more to come and it was like the tears drowned Emma. Having Regina cry on her was more overwhelming than Regina granting her control over her.

A small, sorrowful smile settled on Regina's face. "You're the only person to ever treat me as a person. And, well, I cannot tell my body how to react to you. I didn't expect to enjoy you telling me what to do. This truly began as a way to be close to you and Henry. You two are all I want and I can't have you. I hate this. I hate this pain."

Emma kissed the top of her head. "I'm sorry. I don't want to hurt you."

"I don't want to hurt you. I don't want to be your villain."

Emma held her tighter. "We suck."

"We really do."

Emma nuzzled the top of Regina's head. "I care about you, a lot. I love you, but I lashed out at you because of my own issues. Well, and stress. It's easy to lash out at you because I feel like you'll always be there and now you're trying to go away because of me." Okay, maybe that hurt the most.

Regina nodded. "I know and understand the stress. I didn't help. I forced myself into your life. I made you take in a slave against your will and beliefs. I was selfish, as I often am."

Emma gave another kiss to Regina's crown. "You've gotten better. And the fact that you told me about your kink instead of trying to trick me again proves that."

Regina's shoulders dropped. "I knew it'd be too much, but I trusted you."

Emma shook her head. "It's not really too much. It's just the opposite of what I know about you. After everything you told me in Neverland, it doesn't make sense that you'd want to take orders from somebody, especially me."

Regina stared at her so intensely Emma was certain Regina could see into the depths of her soul. "Only you. I've never felt this way about anyone and I know it has to do with how you've gotten into every inch of me. You make my teeth itch."

Emma laughed. "No one else could ever annoy you like I do." It should not make her feel special, but it did. Tension that balled her into a piece of trash started to ease off of her. She could move, stretch, live.

Regina smiled at her and it was like the sun shining on her after days of rough storms. "No, you're truly a special case and you don't seem to understand that. I trust you with my everything." She held up her letters. "Even in death, even after how much you hurt me."

Emma took a sharp breath and held Regina tighter. _Dude, you are an idiot!_ It never occurred to her how much it meant for Regina to accept her as Henry's other parent. Regina trusted her with Henry. Regina trusted her with everything. Everything.

"This was nice, wasn't it?" Emma asked.

"A dream."

"No, a haven. This is what we all need and want. This is worth fighting for. So, I'm sorry for what I said. It's just been hard." It was time to let things be easy.

Regina nodded. "I'm sorry for my actions. They were less than honest. It has been hard."

This sounded like they had come to a conclusion, one that did not end with Regina handing herself over to die. It sounded like forgiveness, like a second chance. "So, can I kiss you?"

Regina ticked up an eyebrow. "Can you phrase that in another manner?"

Emma got it and caressed Regina's cheek. "Kiss me." And Regina wasted no time in doing so.

-8-8-8-8-

Next time: they kiss and make up some more.


	16. A Throe

I don't own these characters; Disney/ABC does.

A/N: some sexy times ahead.

16: A Throe

Emma was not sure how long she and Regina sat on the floor of the destroyed living room, kissing and crying, but it seemed like all eternity and that was still not long enough. She only realized how tilted the world was and how tense she had been after they paused and she took a breath. She could really breathe. There was no tightness in her chest or sense of doom creeping across every nerve like before. She felt normal for the first time in a long time.

"I'm sorry," Emma apologized again and again. Each apology was accompanied with a kiss to the head, cheek, or lips. "I'm sorry." She almost lost Regina. She almost lost her family. "I'm sorry."

Regina kissed the corner of her mouth. "As am I."

"We always make it so hard. We can't get out of our own way or each other's way." Emma rubbed her head. It did not help that she had been so out of her mind lately.

Regina nodded. "We fear each other because we've never felt this way. At least I haven't."

Emma shook her head. "Believe me, I haven't either, but this is everything I ever wanted for me and for Henry. This is perfect."

Regina seemed to reward her with that description with a kiss. "Which is why it had to be a lie. Nothing is ever perfect."

"Yeah and we proved that, but…" Emma paused to stroke Regina's thigh. It caused Regina to nuzzle her shoulder and Emma shuddered. How was she so stupid to almost toss this away? "We can make it our own. It doesn't have to be perfect."

Regina nuzzled Emma's neck and that was even better than her shoulder. The skin on skin contact was electric. "It just has to be ours. We'll build up something for ourselves. You've turned me to a teen again who hopes and dreams.''

Emma chuckled and melted under the feel of Regina. "I feel the same way. God, it only makes sense for us to almost ruin this."

"Well, we're often awful to each other."

"Yeah. Definitely have to work on that. I hate to think I'm one of those people who hurts the one she loves because I think you'll always be there. I mean, that's terrible. I don't want to hurt you."

"And I don't want to hurt you."

Emma smiled a little. "I'll get better. We'll get better."

Regina gave a soft kiss to her neck. "We will, especially after this. Might we move on now?"

Emma snickered and added a few kisses of her own to the mix, lips to Regina's forehead. "Where do you want to move to?"

The smirk on Regina's face was positively sinful. "I'm sure you can figure it out.''

Emma smiled and placed a flurry of kisses to Regina's cheeks. "Hey, so this kink of yours…"

Regina groaned. "Can we at least not call it a kink?"

Emma brushed Regina's hair back, wanting to see her whole face. "Nope. Calling it a kink and whatever else that gets on your nerves. I just wanna know if it extends to my ability to do this." Emma stood up and lifted Regina in her arms.

Regina squealed and wrapped her arms around Emma's neck. "What? How? I am not that light!"

Emma wiggled her eyebrows. She could get used to this. "You're pretty light, but I think I subconsciously give myself super strength with magic now to keep up with Ruby."

Regina pursed her lips. "Is that supposed to impress me?"

Emma grinned again. "Oh, I know it does. You like the idea of me doing magic as much as you like the fact that I can lift you up." While they never got to any serious magic lessons, there were enough and there was also the fact that Regina was right — Emma used her magic when she needed to.

Regina did not deny it and Emma's grin was so wide, it hurt her face. She wasted no time making her way upstairs. Regina leaned against her, kissing her neck and cheeks. Emma purred from the attention and could not believe the glee she felt when she got to the bedroom. She sat Regina down on the bed like the treasure she was and attached herself to Regina's lips. Regina wasted no time kissing her back. Regina's kisses were like magic and she tasted like heaven. Kissing her was definitely paradise.

Emma wrapped her hands around Regina's waist and gave a little squeeze. Regina's hands were on her biceps and squeezed right back. The simple move made Emma's heart jump in her chest. She felt like she could explode from the attention, but she would welcome it.

Emma pulled back, just enough to look Regina in the face. Staring into those dark brown eyes, it was like seeing Regina for the first time. It was like seeing the world for the first time. A tear slid down Regina's face.

"You okay?" Emma asked as she wiped the tear away.

Regina laughed. "I'm happy. I don't think I've ever felt this way before. I'm damn near giddy." And she outright giggled.

"Oh, my god! I made you make that sound. I'm officially awesome." Emma was dead serious about her pride. She threw her shoulders back and grinned.

Regina swatted her arm, but it was more like a light caress. "I did not make that sound. You never heard that. I don't giggle."

Emma snickered. "Okay." There was silence for a moment. "Hey, on a serious note, how does this work? Do you want me to just order you around or do the whole dominating thing?" Emma could do that. She had done it in the past. It was fun. It could be fun again, depending on how they did it.

Regina cupped her face and gave her a sweet peck on the lips. "I'm not really sure. Can we play it by ear to see what we're both comfortable with?"

"Okay, but that could be a little iffy. I don't want to hurt you or remind you of anything unpleasant. We should talk about whatever we can for something like this."

Regina twirled a lock of Emma's hair. "I don't think you'll remind me of anything. Whenever I'm with you, I just think about you."

Emma's heart fluttered and she smiled. "Aw, you love me."

Regina narrowed her gaze. "Don't make me reconsider."

"You already did and you still picked me. This is a real hollow threat." Emma nodded and then put her chin in the air.

Regina frowned. "You're going to be insufferable."

Emma stood up a little taller. "Definitely. But, we both know you're going to be that way, too. Now, I'm going to take off your cuffs." She wanted to give Regina what she wanted, but she also needed to give herself what she needed.

"And the collar?" Regina's eyes glistened a little and Emma was not sure what to make of it.

"The collar, too. If you want a collar and cuffs, we can buy some online together." She could be all right with that. Those things would not be signs of Regina's slavery.

Regina moaned and now her eyes looked down right delighted. "Do you mean it? You're not upset? Disgusted?"

Emma scoffed. "Regina, you always think I'm sweet, innocent, and pure as the driven snow, even though you have tons of evidence that shows you I'm very much not those things. I've lived. I've done some things. I've seen some things. I've heard things. This isn't disgusting. Again, shocking because of who you are, but doable. Now, sit still while I get the keys."

Regina sat up straight like the perfect lady. _Guess she really is into it_. Emma held in a laugh as she got the keys from the nightstand and freed Regina from her bonds. If this was a trick, now would be the time for something to happen. Regina just sat there, prim and proper.

"Good girl." Emma rewarded Regina with a kiss.

Regina moaned into her mouth. _So, she likes to be told she's a good girl. Well, that's just one more thing we have in common_. Emma eased away from Regina's mouth and took Regina's left wrist into her hands. She stroked the redden skin with her thumb.

"Teach me how to heal you. I don't want to do this with you hurt," Emma said. Their magic lessons had involved how Emma could heal herself, with Regina expressing concern for Emma running out into madness everyday.

Regina gave her this soft smile that hit her right in the heart and made it thump like there was bass in her system. "It's not that hard for something like this. You know basic healing at least for yourself. Now, it's about focusing your magic outward instead of in. Your magic lends to follow your intentions. So, just will it and it should happen."

Emma nodded, as that sounded simple enough. She put Regina's raw wrist to her lips and kissed the rough skin there. Emma jumped as she felt a spark from her lips and Regina yelped. Emma looked up at her and she smiled. She liked making Regina make little noises. She switched wrists and kissed that one, feeling more of a flow than a spark that time. Regina shuddered.

"You okay?" Emma asked. _She needs someone to take care of her. I wanna do that. I wanna take care of her_.

Regina's breath hitched and she nodded. "Make me do something. Tell me to do something." She sounded so eager, so breathless.

"Undress."

Regina bit her bottom lip. She looked ready to burst. Emma held in a giggle. It was a delight to see Regina happy, giddy anyway. She was cute. Emma stepped back to give Regina room to work.

Regina crossed her legs, one knee over the other and plucked at the button top button of her shirt. It was the only button-down shirt she had been left with and she wore it whenever she went outside. It was like being fancy was her armor and she was willing to drop her armor for Emma.

Emma's heart pounded heavy in her chest. Regina plucked the button, but of course it was already undone. She had to go three buttons down to get to a button to pop open. She managed it with one hand. Emma was sort of amazed at her dexterity. _That'll be awesome for later_. Emma had trouble unbuttoning her shirt with both hands under normal circumstances, but she would not have to worry about that anymore. She could tell Regina to do it and Regina would be happy to. _Can't let that power go to my head_.

Once the buttons were open and Emma could see Regina's smooth skin, she could feel so much heat scratching at her skin. _I'm a fucking idiot. I almost tanked this whole thing_. Regina managed to shimmy out of her shirt with a little shake of her shoulders and it was sexy. Emma had to go in for a taste. She showered kisses to Regina's shoulders and then her neck. It was paradise.

Regina moaned and pushed against Emma's wanting lips. "What about undressing?"

"Back to that in a second. I just need to feel you." Emma felt Regina nod and attached her lips to Regina's neck, gently sucking at the skin there. Would Regina mind a hickey?

Regina tilted her head, silently begging for more. Maybe a hickey was in order, so Emma suckled harder. Regina bucked against her and made an adorable yelp. She wrapped a hand around Emma's head, holding her close. It made Emma want to mark her even more, leave a big red mark on Regina's neck for the world to see, but they would not. Regina would probably put her collar back when she went outside. _Wait. she doesn't need to do that_. She pulled away.

"Stop wearing the collar," Emma said. It was a request really, but she wanted it to sound like an order.

Regina, in a daze, blinked and her eyes took a moment to focus on Emma. "What?"

"Stop wearing the collar."

Regina squinted as she tried to mentally catch up to the conversation. "I'm not wearing the collar."

Emma shook her head and gave Regina's thighs a squeeze. "No, I mean, in general, altogether. That collar was part of a punishment, but we're not a punishment. We're a couple and a family. So, don't wear the collar anymore."

Regina's eyes glistened. "I won't wear it ever again."

And there went Emma's heart again. Emma smiled and stroked Regina's neck with her index finger. "Like I said, if you really want a collar, we can buy one together and you can wear it in here to your heart's content." It would probably be fun.

Regina let go a low moan. "Please, tell me you mean that. You're not just saying it, right?"

"I'm not. We'll buy you something in nice black leather."

"Fuck," Regina said softly.

"Yeah, back to that." After hearing Regina say it, Emma really needed to do it. "Finish undressing." It took all of her willpower to step away.

Regina gave her an eager nod. She unfastened her pants and eased them down her slim hips. Now, she was in her underwear, plain cotton bra and panties. Emma sighed and caressed Regina's face.

"I just realized, they took your underwear, too," Emma said. This would not stand. They had to get Regina's armor back. Not just for Regina, but also so if she did another strip tease, she would actually have something to tease.

"Well, it was a punishment."

"But, it's not anymore." If necessary, she would buy Regina sexy lingerie and new clothes herself.

"It is not."

"Then undress me." Emma stepped close enough for Regina to reach her.

Regina somehow managed to make pulling Emma's henley over her head sexy. It might have to do with Regina lapping at her nipple, which was still covered by her bra, as she eased the shirt off. She wished she could see it, but the damn shirt was in the way. She ran her hand through Regina's hair before gathering it in her grip. Regina seemed to take that as a hint to spend time with Emma's nipple and it was a glorious sight. The bra was wet with Regina's attention, and it was not the only thing.

Emma groaned. "Regina, undress me." She growled at the end, needing to be naked and pressed against this enchantress who desired her and who she craved.

Regina undid Emma's pants and dragged them down Emma's hips. Her hands caressed Emma's skin like silk. Tingles floated through her. The feeling, while definitely erotic, felt pure. It was the truth. How dare she ever think this was a lie?

"Regina, this is all honest, genuine, real," Emma said. It needed to be said after she had the audacity to say it was anything more.

"I know." Regina kissed her thigh.

Emma hated that she needed to step away, but she needed space to get out of her boots. Regina stared at her with eyes laced with desire, but also stricken, like she needed Emma next to her right now. Of course, Emma almost tripped over herself to get out of her boots. Regina was kind enough not to smirk over it.

Shoes off, Emma took care of her own pants and underwear. She ripped off her bra before diving back to Regina's mouth As they kissed, Emma put her hands on Regina's thighs, pushing her back.

Regina took the non verbal command as well as the verbal. Regina moved to the middle of the bed and settled against the pillows. Regina's hands wandered Emma's ribs and made their way to Emma's breasts. There was that pure feeling along with hot passion. Flashing bolts of pleasure, too much for a simple touch, blazed through Emma's body. Emma moaned into Regina's mouth. _I can't wait!_

Emma dipped her hand into Regina's panties and was met with warm need. It was like discovering heaven and Emma yearned for it all, wanted it forever. Regina moaned and bucked against her. Having Regina move against her, silently beg her, it was too much for Emma. Her brain could barely process it and Regina arching against her did not help matters at all.

"That's it. Ride my hand, baby," Emma said in a hushed tone.

Regina moaned and did just that. Emma was beyond fascinated, watching Regina move, feeling Regina against her. Regina mewed and it struck Emma down to her core. This was too much. She needed to really see and feel Regina. She pulled away to rip away Regina's underwear, actually tearing the cheap cloth in the process. So what? It was not like she would let Regina wear those ever again. Regina smiled as she was bare to Emma.

"Be a good girl and lie here for me while I enjoy you, okay?" Emma said. She would go out of her mind if she did not have Regina right now.

Regina gave what could only be called a cute smile and nodded. "Yes, please." Maybe she had brought out teenage Regina again.

"You're so good."

Regina moaned and her breath hitched as Emma just let her hands drift down Regina's sides. A breathless Regina was so sexy. Emma went in for another kiss and filled her hand with Regina's breast. It felt like perfection and she needed to put her mouth all over it. So, somehow, she pulled away from wonderful lips and kissed her way down to Regina's chest.

Before coming to her destination, Emma rained wet kisses on Regina's collarbones, unable to stop touching and tasting Regina. It took so much willpower to continue downward, but she wanted to show Regina how loved her was, how special she was, how true this whole thing was.

Kissing her way down, Emma's mouth managed to make it to Regina's breast and ravaged it with her lips. With gentle bites, she took Regina's nipple into her mouth and adored it with her tongue as if it was the most precious thing on Earth. Regina cooed and clung to Emma as if Emma was the only thing tethering her to the world. It was a heady feeling, like Emma could go off into space and never come down.

Emma kissed and stroked Regina's chest with care and curiosity. She had a good time listening to Regina moaning. And then, as she nibbled, Regina dug her nails into Emma's shoulders and it was so good, Emma throbbed with want. She ached to give Regina the same feeling, the same sensation. She kissed her way down to Regina's navel and then dragged her tongue down lower, all the while looking Regina in the eye.

"Good girl. Keep looking at me," Emma said.

Regina bit her lip and nodded. Emma groaned at the sight. She moved down the bed and then yanked Regina to her. Regina yelped, which turned into a moan as Emma dived right in, savoring her as if she were on the menu. Emma ran her tongue up and down, watching Regina. Regina did not break eye contact until Emma wrapped her lips around Regina's clit. She released the treasure as Regina's eyes fluttered shut.

"Eyes open or I'll stop," Emma said, not sure she would go through with that threat. This was as much for her as for Regina. She _needed_ to give Regina this.

Regina whimpered as dark eyes opened. "No, please," her voice was weak, young, but still sexy as hell.

"Then be good like you promised and keep your eyes open."

Regina nodded and purred. "I'll be good. I'll be good."

Emma smiled and went back to her treat. She eyed Regina as she worshipped her with her tongue and lips. The eye contact made the connection seem so much deeper, heavier, but in a good way. It was more than seeing the pleasure on Regina's face. It was like seeing into Regina's soul and watching it blossom and shine. She wanted to see this everyday for the rest of her life. She wanted Regina to shine bright and beautiful.

"I'm gonna go inside, okay?" Emma asked. Yeah, Regina might want her to be in charge, but she still needed verbal consent here, especially with Regina.

"Yes." Regina groaned, the vein in her forehead popped up and she looked even better.

That was all Emma needed and she had no problem easing a finger into Regina. She watched her finger disappear and could not be more fascinated by the sight if she tried. It did not help as she felt Regina ripple around her. It pulsed through her entire body and burned her up in the best of ways. She returned to suckle Regina's clit as she worked one finger, in and out, and then two.

Regina never broke eye contact as she moaned and flexed her thigh, running her foot up and down Emma's back. Each movement shot sparks through Emma and she wanted more. She drank in Regina, drowning in her very essence. Regina clawed at her arms and her back, breathing heavy. It only made Emma love her more.

"Emma," Regina whined.

"You gonna come?"

"Tell me."

"Come."

It only took one word for Regina to cry out, folding over into Emma's face. Emma's tongue was gifted with more sweet nectar and no doubt that Regina got off on being commanded by her. She could get used to that, could get drunk on it if she was not careful. Regina collapsed against the mattress, chest heaving, body flushed, and as beautiful as any person ever could be.

"You're gorgeous, you know?" Emma asked, but Regina was too blissed out of her mind to respond.

Emma moved as Regina was lost in pleasure and she gathered Regina in her arms, cradling Regina against her. Regina tucked in close to her and they got lost in the simple feel of flesh against flesh. Eventually, Regina looked up at her with sparkling eyes. Emma had to kiss her.

"Feeling good? Feeling loved?" Emma asked. She wanted Regina to feel like the paradise she was, the paradise she delivered too Emma.

"Tell me to do something else."

Emma thought Regina wanted to make love to her, but she wanted to revel in this a little more. She decided to go another route, something to test the waters. She put the fingers she had inside of Regina to Regina's lips.

"Suck," Emma said, certain she was in for a thrill.

Regina smirked at Emma and Emma shuddered at the rush through her. Regina opened her mouth and eased Emma's fingers in, running her tongue along Emma's fingertips and down. She did not stop until she was down to Emma's knuckles and Emma thought she might explode. And Regina sucked and stroked Emma's fingers with her tongue. Regina added to the pleasure, taking Emma's breast into her hand and kneading it at the same pace she sucked Emma's finger. Emma threw her head back and moaned.

"Yes, babe. Fuck that's good," Emma said.

Regina's eyes said it all. She smirked with her eyes. Emma groaned and fell back against the pillows. Regina did not ease up.

"Fuck. Okay, put me out of my misery," Emma said. No more teasing, no more playing around. She needed Regina to put the fire out under her skin before she imploded from all of this sensation.

Regina arched an eyebrow and Emma pulled her fingers away. "How?"

Emma wanted to think about it, but felt like she did not have the time or brain cells to think. She was about to go out of her mind. "Mouth now."

Regina did not keep Emma waiting. Emma could hardly contain herself as Regina kissed her quite intimately, tongue pressed to her clit. Jolts of pleasure shot through her and never seemed to stop. It never felt like this before. It was like an overload of love and pleasure, felt down to every cell in her body. Crying out to the ceiling, Emma could not believe Regina touching her was just as heavenly as touching Regina. _This is fucking amazing!_

Emma ran her hands through Regina's hair, caressing her scalp. Regina seemed to respond to that, upping her game. It was like her tongue was everywhere and when she sucked on Emma's clit, it was like she did magic without doing magic. The world faded and there was nothing but bliss. It was like Regina surrounded her, inside and out. The burning sensation from before was replaced by Regina somehow. Regina was her pleasure.

Emma did not have much of a choice when she climaxed, Regina's name on her lips. The world lost focus in the best of ways and when she returned from her haze, Regina was cuddled up next to her, caressing her bicep. _I knew she liked my guns_. Emma could not resist a kiss, a small peck on the lips. She tasted herself, but beyond that, she tasted Regina and the truth. Regina smiled.

"You're beautiful, especially when you're happy," Emma said.

Regina blushed. "You are, too."

Emma sighed. "I am happy. I'm happy this is real and it's right and it's true."

"Yes, to all of that."

"Yeah, it's great. You're great. I feel great." Her brain still was not at its best as far as putting together whole thoughts. "And tired. Great and tired."

Regina kissed her chin. "Then sleep. You've earned it."

Emma could not help listening to that. She was drained, but full somehow. She was drowsy, but felt like she could take on the world, but did not want to move from this spot. Sleep came easy for once.

-8-8-8-8-

Regina had to smile to herself as she watched Emma sleep. In the past, it would have disturbed her to be so attached to someone, especially someone as damaged as Emma. It seemed like they healed each other by appreciating each other and in the same way they could hurt each other, they could heal each other as long as they tried. She forgave Emma in ways she never would have imagined. She did not mind, which was odd, but she did not care. She only wanted the best for Emma.

"I want to take care of you for whatever reason." She kissed Emma's forehead and Emma smiled in her sleep. The soft expression made Regina happy in a way she would have thought was stupid a year ago.

Regina glanced at the clock, surprised it was barely noon. They had a couple of hours before Henry would come in. She would need to get up soon to clean up. _No, wait, I can use magic!_ She glanced at her nude wrists.

No more irons for her. She would not miss them. She shuddered and tingled over buying a collar with Emma. _Looks like the bug was right. At least he's not smug about these things, and I should probably stop calling him "the bug," even if it's just in my thoughts_. It was not surprising Doctor Hopper was right, but in hindsight, they both always made things more difficult than they needed to be. With luck, they turned a corner at this point. They would not be able to survive each other if they did not.

"We will be better," Regina said, speaking it aloud, so it had a better chance being the truth Emma sought. A vow out loud held so much more weight than words inside of her head.

For the moment, Regina let herself be happy. It was a pure contentment and she had a fleeting memory of something vaguely like this, a long time ago. But, was more than just a flash from the past. Emma's weight against her was something she had never felt before. She was safe and secure, like she would be protected in a way no one had ever bothered to do. She hoped Emma felt the same with her.

"You okay?" Emma asked, sleep scratching her throat.

"Yes. Enjoying watching you sleep." Regina caressed Emma's shoulder.

Emma smiled. "Every night."

"I like that."

"I like you." Emma kissed her.

"I like you as well." She gave a kiss of her own. She could get used to this.

"I'm glad I ditched work to be with you. I should probably go back, though." Emma sighed and did not appear happy with that thought at all.

"No, you shouldn't. You have to take care of yourself first and foremost. You can't let them run you ragged like this. Every day you come in, you look like death warmed over."

Emma blew out a breath. "Coming here, coming home to this family might be the only thing keeping me alive. Most of the time, you know what I need and save me from having breakdown at the least."

Regina smiled. "I try."

"Well, you're very good at it. Seriously, coming home to you and Henry gives me life. You are my life, my reason for living. Hell, one of the main reasons I stick around this stupid town and consider it home is because you're here. You and Henry are home and I want to make it safe for you both."

"I understand. At this point, I just want to be here for you and Henry. You are my life. You and Henry are everything." And maybe that had always been the case, but she had not realized it. Henry being everything was easy. Adding Emma to that mix was something difficult, as they had proven.

A grin lit up Emma's face and she kissed Regina with fervor. Regina smiled against her lips and kissed her back. She could get used to this so easily and she leaned into Emma, letting her know that, but also giving her a silent plea. _Don't hurt me again, please_.

"You and Henry are everything," Regina repeated. She needed Emma to understand that. "You're my everything."

Emma nodded. "Then do us all a favor and never consider suicide again. I know things can seem bleak, but with time, they get better."

"Or worse." Life definitely taught her things got worse.

"There's always moments to live for. Henry has to learn to drive. He has to take a lucky girl or boy to prom and we have to make him blush over how handsome he looks. He has to graduate and go to college and so much other stuff. He needs his mom there. He needs you, even if you think he doesn't."

Regina hoped that was true. She had always needed her mother. She just never got her mother. She could not do that to Henry.

"And you know I need you," Emma said. "Even when I think I don't. This whole thing proves that."

Regina sighed and kissed Emma's forehead. "I need you, too. And, yes, this whole thing proves that." She might never think she did not now.

Emma smiled and pulled her closer. "Good because I'm never letting you go."

"So…" Regina swallowed as nervousness crawled up her throat. "Were you serious about us buying me a collar?" Yes, Emma mentioned it twice, but that just could have been the passion talking. Things had cooled down now. Was Emma really ready to handle this?

Emma reached up and caressed Regina's neck with one finger. "Collar. Cuffs, too, if you want."

"Really?" Regina could not control the squeak in her voice. _Sometimes, I wish I didn't know you_. Of course, this proved that sometimes, she actually did not know herself.

"Yeah. If this makes you happy, I'm as willing to do it as you are to make tacos." Emma grinned.

"Is that a request or an order?" She had made tacos before, on a night when Emma looked particularly haggard. It cheered her up some, which made Regina happy.

Emma shook her head. "I'd never order you about for dinner. I have no problem doing it in the bedroom with a safe word."

"You could do it around the house." Regina would enjoy being ordered around in non-sexual ways just as much as in a sexual manner, as she already had enjoyed it. It just had to be Emma directing her.

"I know, but I don't want to do it around Henry. He might think I'm treating you like a servant and then he'll tell me off. Hell, I'd let him and then be proud that he did it."

That was a fair point. "You're right."

"Besides, you might like us being just an average family. I know I will."

Regina cuddled into Emma. "You're right about that.''

"Yeah." Emma shifted, so she could caress Regina's thigh. "I gotta go clean up downstairs."

"No, you don't."

Emma's face scrunched up. "We have to. We can't let Henry come into that mess."

Regina raised her hand and made a gentle sweeping motion. "It's done."

"Show off." Emma kissed her shoulder.

"I just want to stay here with you for as long as possible."

"I'm all for that."

"Good." Regina tucked in close and inhaled Emma's perfect scent. There was a hint of spice to Emma and it felt like it gave Regina life. It was perfect. This was perfect. Perfect for them.

-8-8-8-8-

Next time: the villains make a stand… and it's blown apart.


	17. Pain is Inevitable

I don't own these characters; Disney/ABC does.

A/N: just a warning, my favorite head-canon for Regina pops up in this chapter. I've hinted to it throughout the story, but it's outright stated here.

17: Pain is Inevitable

By the time Henry came home, Regina and Emma had moved to the living room. Along with cleaning up the mess, they cleaned up each other and that was done more with the shower rather than magic. Magic was used to get Regina clothing that was more her style to wear around the house. Well, more pants her style. She had on Emma's shirt, but yoga pants made from magic. There was something wonderful and peaceful about wearing Emma's shirt. She tried not to think on it too much right now.

They had found a movie to enjoy. They had made out a bit, but by the time Henry walked in, they were cuddled up. They turned at the sound of the door closing and smiled to greet him. He smiled back.

"Hey, Emma, what're you doing home?" Henry asked with a furrowed brow.

"I wasn't having a good day, so I came home. Being with your mom made me feel better," Emma replied. Regina wanted to sit up taller, but was quite content tucked in close with her head under Emma's chin with a hand pressed to Emma's heart. Feeling the steady rhythm under her fingertips soothed her and made her feel like things would be all right this time.

Henry pursed his lips and nodded. "You did seem out of it this morning."

Emma smiled at him, looking much better than she had that morning. "I feel better. Wanna come watch this movie with us?" She patted the space next to her.

He grinned at them and bounced on his heels for a moment. His expression was so blinding and hopeful. It filled Regina with joy. Her heart felt so light. This was even more perfect than before.

"Yeah. Lemme just put me stuff in my room." Henry disappeared upstairs, book bag slung over his shoulder.

Emma and Regina settled back on the couch, moving around a little to get their relaxing groove back. Emma stroked Regina's thigh, which made her skin tingle, even though thin pants covered her. Regina caressed the space where Emma's heart was, but tucked her other arm behind Emma. She rubbed the small of Emma's back with one finger.

"I really like you in my shirt," Emma said as she tugged on the shirt Regina had on.

"I get the feeling you'll enjoy me in your clothes as much as out of your clothes. You want to claim me," Regina replied and then she rubbed her nose in Emma's neck. Even her scent was soothing and held so much promise. Regina could not help kissing her neck.

Emma cooed. "Yes, you can wear my clothes around the house. Maybe even outside depending on the style. I do like it." She pulled Regina a little closer, even though they were already impossibly close.

Regina was not surprised by Emma's possessiveness, even though she had not wanted to share her desire with Emma. Emma had grown up with not very many things that were hers. Like most people, Emma would like to have belongings. Well, now she had Regina.

For a long moment, things were silent, but Emma's forehead had a little wrinkle in it. "You sure you're okay with this?" she eventually asked.

"I believe this whole thing was my idea," Regina replied.

"Well, yeah, and maybe it was fun in your mind…"

Regina inhaled, breathing in the care and concern Emma had for her. It was refreshing. Someone cared about her mental welfare. "And it's very satisfying in real life as well. Thank you for worrying about my wellbeing. That's one of the reasons why this is possible. You're different. You're special."

Emma grinned, as Regina expected. Emma needed to know she mattered and Regina had no problem with being the one to do it. The conversation ended just in time for their son to join them. Henry flopped down on the couch in the spot Emma patted earlier and he leaned against Emma. Emma grunted, but then pulled him closer and they enjoyed the movie together. It was beautiful.

When the movie was over, Regina went to make dinner. Emma and Henry followed her, offering to help with various things. She turned them down, mostly because she enjoyed cooking as a hobby, but they hung around. They talked the whole time about nonsense things and it was nice, just keeping Regina company. When dinner was done, Henry and Emma made the table and then they all sat down at the table.

"You're not wearing your collar," Henry said with an incline of his head.

Regina nodded. "Emma and I spoke about it. It's not necessary."

Henry smiled. "That's good. So, we're like a normal family now? Nobody's a servant or prisoner of war or pretending to be a princess. Just normal."

"As normal as anyone can be around here and who was pretending to be a princess?" Emma glanced at Regina, who shook her head.

Henry chuckled and gave them this lighthearted look. "Maybe it was me."

"Ah, look at you, growing a sense of humor. That was a good one." Emma leaned across the table and gave Henry a playful shove. "Just don't try to out joke me around here. I'm the funny one."

"That doesn't sound accurate," Regina said.

"What? We all know I'm the funny one in this family, right, Henry?" Emma winked at him.

"I think I'm the funny one," Henry replied.

Emma shook her head. "You're not the funny one. I'm definitely the funny one. The funny one and cute one. Come on, Regina, back me up."

"I don't know where you get these ideas from. You're not funny," Regina said.

"Henry, tell your mom I'm funny." Emma motioned to Regina with both hands.

Henry went with the wise move of not picking a side by giving a little shrug and that seemed to be good enough for him. Regina and Emma smiled at each other. Emma reached across the table and took Regina's hand. It made her heart thump and her body relaxed in a way she never knew was possible. This was everything Regina ever wanted.

"Do you see Neal today?" Emma asked Henry.

"No. I came right home. I thought you'd be having a bad day after this morning and I was gonna ask Mom for ideas to help cheer you up, but she already did. It's good you guys can do that for each other." He smiled at them and Emma squeezed her hand.

"You should always feel welcome to try to cheer us up as well," Regina said to let him know he did the right thing, even though he did not get to follow through. It meant a lot to Emma for her to know Henry cared about her wellbeing.

He nodded and pointed to them. "I want you guys to be happy, like you want me to be happy."

"I want us all to be happy," Emma said.

"We can be," Regina said. It would take work, but she had faith they would do their best now.

"I think we got this." Henry held up two fists, as if that made his statement stronger. That was good enough for Regina. He wanted them to be stronger, so they would be so. Dinner was quiet after that, but appreciative. There was a lot of smiling.

They all cleaned up together when everything was done and spent some time together in the living room, just talking about things they liked before it was time for Henry to go to bed. Regina and Emma settled on the couch again. They had wine and a blanket now. Regina put on some jazz music, which Emma seemed fine with.

"We should've been doing this forever ago," Emma said as Regina leaned against her. Emma rested her head on top of Regina's for a moment.

Regina tucked in closer, resting her head on Emma's chest. Listening to Emma's heart with the jazz playing in the background was like heavenly music. "Let's enjoy it now rather than live in the past."

"And plan for the future since you'll be around now," Emma said.

Regina sighed, as if this was some great burden to tease Emma. "I suppose. Someone has to keep an eye on you, after all, and I seem best suited for the job. And since that is the case, would you like to do me a favor?"

"What favor? I already did the dishes, including the pots. If anything, I should be asking you for favors after that."

"You're terrible." Regina shook her head and then moved to look Emma in the eye. "I told the so-called villains to fight Town Hall using the rules. One way to do it would be a protest if you're willing to give them the permit."

A blonde eyebrow ticked up. "Is that what the meeting was about? The damn Council made me think they had a nuke or something."

Regina laughed. "Nothing of the sort. Most of us aren't that fun anymore." Most of the so-called villains had settled into their Storybrooke lives and enjoyed what they had. Yes, they had more than most, but they were not trying to stir up trouble like in the Old World.

"Nice to know. Yeah, I've got no problem signing the permit. Is it safe for the villains to be out like that, though? They've got targets on their backs. And while me and Ruby are a greater force than just me, it's still just the two of us keeping order."

"It should be fine. The villains trust you to be fair if you have to arrest anyone. They just don't trust anyone else to be fair."

Emma shrugged. "Eh, they're not wrong for that."

"Yes, we know. They want to do something before they end up collared and chained like me. Of course, for them, it won't be voluntary."

Emma nodded. "Good for them. Fight the power!" She put her fist in the air.

Regina chuckled as she took Emma's fist in both of her hands. "Dearest, you are the power."

Emma's eyes went wide and she gasped, as if she never actually realized that. "Holy shit, I am! Is that why I hate this job so much?"

"You don't hate the job. You hate your bosses and what they want you to do. When you're able to help people again, you'll be fine and you'll be fine. When you're actually working toward justice, you'll be fine." Regina was certain Emma was so stressed because the Council wanted her to do the wrong things and it ran contrary to Emma's nature. No, Emma was not an angel, but she liked to be a good person when she was able to.

Emma could not be unfair to people, could not deal people injustice. Emma was too familiar with those things, too familiar with the suffering of those things. She did not want to hurt people like that.

Emma did not dispute that, but the way she held Regina shifted. Emma was worried. Regina wanted to fix it. Hopefully, she could.

-8-8-8-8-

Emma went to work with a belly full of strawberry pancakes, hash browns, and coffee, feeling a lot better than she did yesterday. Ruby was there already, alone now, sitting at her desk. They stared at each other for a long moment and then a small smile settled onto Ruby's desk.

"I'm glad you came back. I mean, I didn't think you quit, but I was scared," Ruby said.

Emma shook her head. "I'm not going to quit. They're going to have to fire me, which they might do after yesterday." She wanted to help people and keep the town together and she would do that as long as she could, even if the stupid Council fired her.

"Your parents want to talk to you about that."

Emma reeled, rolling her head around her shoulders. "Oh, now they want to talk. All it takes is a good cursing out. To hell with that." She waved that off. She did not want to bring herself down by dealing with Snow and Charming. She felt too good right now.

Ruby frowned, but there was sorrow in her eyes. "You sure? I think you might've gotten through to them."

Emma's mouth pulled to one side. "Yeah, right. What were they talking about when I came in here?" That would probably spell trouble for them, so she would rather worry over that than be annoyed over her parents.

Ruby scoffed and kicked her feet up onto her desk. "The same Council nonsense. They seemed to think I could talk you into arresting the villains. They sincerely believe the villains are planning a war."

Emma sucked her teeth and dropped into one of the empty chairs. "Maybe if they tried to include people, things wouldn't come to that." Was it like this in Fairy Tale land or had the villains just pushed people to always assume the worst with them?

"I told them the Council was going about this the wrong way. Hell, I told them the damn Council was a bad idea, but they don't want to hear it. Really, out of all this, the only thing I was with was Regina being punished because she deserved it. But, the rest of this mess had disaster written all over it and no one wanted to listen to me."

"Why?" Beyond the fact that her parents were stubborn as hell. It had to hurt Ruby that her best friend Snow ignored her advice, especially with Ruby seeing just how right she was.

Ruby slapped the desk with one hand. "I don't know! It's like if they admit any part of this world or any aspect of the Curse is good then all is lost. They're not listening to me on anything." She rubbed the bridge of her nose.

"What else were they talking about?" Emma wanted to be ready for whatever new bullshit the Council might dream up.

"Nothing to do with the town. I've been telling them to talk to you for a long time. When you blew up on them, I thought that would be it, but did they talk to you?" Ruby scoffed and rolled her eyes. "Damn hard-headed people." Ruby frowned so hard it looked like she might break her teeth. She was hurt over her friends behavior and Emma wished she could make it better, but she was not the friend ruining everything.

Emma scoffed. "Of course you tried and it went nowhere."

Sighing, Ruby scrubbed her face with both hands. "Yeah, they're making this way harder than I thought was possible. They're being more stubborn than I've ever known with everything happening here. They don't seem to think they could lose you. They don't want to acknowledge the stress you're under or the stress they're helping to put on you."

Emma took a deep breath. "Okay. Yesterday I thought you were with them."

Ruby shook her head. "Usually, but not right now. They don't understand not everybody hates living here. Yeah, I hated losing my agency for twenty-eight years. That will never _not_ be bad, which is why I felt Regina needed to be punished. But, I don't mind living here now. There's a bunch of people who like it here now that we can enjoy it. We don't need to make it the Enchanted Forest sequel or something like this. This could be good for a lot of people, but they're trying to make it good for a select few and that's not okay. Hell, it's almost as bad as Regina, just no mind-rape and kidnapping."

"You don't have to convince me." Emma held up her hands in surrender.

"Well, that's one best friend then." Ruby scowled and her eyes focused ahead of her, sort like she was lost in thought for a long moment. "They don't realize they're fighting a nonexistent war."

"Maybe they can't turn it off." She was not sure how long they had been fighting, but it seemed like it was the better part of her parents lives. She knew how hard it was to let go of habits that were cultivated over years of trying to stay alive. The problem was they were community leaders and they were responsible for too many people to be stuck in their ways.

Ruby nodded. "They've been fighting Regina for a long time. They don't seem to realize they can stop. They're not fighting her anymore. They don't need to fight."

Emma shrugged. "Well, we can't convince them." If putting Regina in chains and a collar and handing her over as a gift did not tell them they won, then she did not see what would signal victory to them.

Ruby sighed. "I don't want them to go down the wrong path, to waste their time, to lose time will you, or worse lose you."

Emma shrugged. "You shouldn't worry about this. You've done what you could. Come on, let's get some work done."

Ruby nodded and pushed up out of her chair. It was good to know Ruby was still with her. If only her parents listened to Ruby, but they had their heads too far up their asses.

The day was quiet in comparison to other days, for a little while anyway. It was not until the afternoon when it was called in that there was a fire down at _The_ _Lady in Grey_. _Regina!_ Emma teleported there with Ruby. Ruby yelped, but the sound vanished with them and was gone by the time they touched down.

"Since when do you do magic like that?" Ruby asked, but Emma ignored that question as they looked at the huge blaze. The heat licked at their skin and they were a fairly good distance away.

"Where the hell is the fire department?" Emma looked around and listened for sirens. There was nothing.

Ruby shook her head. "You forgot the all-wise, all-mighty Council fired most of the fire department a few days ago?"

Emma growled and balled her hands into tight fists. "Lemme guess, they were villains."

"Yup."

Emma scanned the area, needing to figure something out. She could use magic, but she did not know what she should do. But, she did not need to. The flames died down on their own, or so it seemed. A side door exploded out and a couple of dozen people poured out into the street. Regina did not appear to be one of them. Emma and Ruby moved to help anyone who might need it.

"Adan, make sure things are secure!" The former fire chief voice boomed as he pointed and waved people out of the door. A mountain of a man rushed back inside, as if fire meant nothing to him.

"What happened? Everybody okay?" Emma moved between coughing people, wanting to see if anyone was worse off than the others.

"Fire bombs thrown in multiple locations. Nothing we can't handle. Hell, Adan caught one and swallowed it. Damn cherufes are crazy." The fire chief shook his head. "Did you see anybody?" he asked Emma.

Emma frowned and looked around. "It was clear when we got here. Ruby, any chance of you tracking them down?" She turned to her deputy.

Ruby shrugged. "Can't be hard to track the smell of gasoline if that's what they used." She glanced at the chief. "Was it gasoline?"

"Feeling the fire, it was a gas and alcohol along with black powder of all things."

"That can't be too hard." Ruby looked at Emma. "You make sure everybody's good." Ruby ran off.

Emma checked on everyone with the help of several former members of the fire department. No one seemed too worse for wear and anyone who was bad off was healed by one of several witches in the group. Regina definitely was not among the group. _Maybe she's safe at home_. Or so was the hope.

"Regina wasn't here, was she?" Emma had to ask.

"No, she came by earlier with the permit you signed."

Emma nodded and was about to ask about the rally they planned, but her phone rang. It was Ruby. She found the guys. _That was fast_.

"Gotta go arrest the people that did this," Emma said.

Former Chief Aftab looked down at her with a hard stare. "Try not to let them out."

"I always try." She just never succeeded. She vanished from the scene.

Emma and Ruby arrested three people in regards to burning down _The Lady in Grey_. They were not too worried, expecting the Council to get them out. That was not happening. Emma was done letting criminals go.

"You know they're going to come up here and yell at us," Ruby said.

"Let them come. Reckless bastards. They fired the fire department when idiots like this are throwing fire around every other day. People could've died."

"We have to get the villains before they get us!" One of the prisoners had the nerve to say.

"You don't have the damn right to execute anyone!" Emma banged on the cell bars.

"You're going to get us all killed? The villains will murder every single one of us if we don't get them first. The Council knows that."

It barely took an hour for the Council to flood the station when Emma refused to let the prisoners go. It was a bit of a shock it took them so long since Town Hall was right across the street. Emma and Ruby stood shoulder to shoulder in front of Emma's office.

"Sheriff, what do you think you're doing?" Edmund Kent demanded with a glare.

Emma was completely unbothered by the crowd. "Detaining criminals. They tried to burn people alive. I'm not letting them out. This has to stop."

"You do as we say, Sheriff," Maurice said.

Emma wagged her finger at the man. "No. I uphold the law. I protect the people of the town. That includes the people you think are villains. I'm done putting people in danger and I'm done letting people get by while putting people in danger."

"But, you're doing just that," David said as he pushed his way to the front of the crowd. He looked puffed up as he stared her down like everyone else, like he could force her to change her mind. "The villains are planning something. We know it's something big because that's what they do. They'll get us all if we let them."

Emma looked at him just as hard as he looked at her. "No. They're living their lives. You're seeing plots that aren't there and putting people in danger because of it. You fired the fire department for being villains, basically saying it's okay to treat so-called villains any way you want and not considering how fires spread. You didn't bother to tell me you fired them, even though you know we've got a huge rise in arsons. You didn't even put together a volunteer squad or if you did, they didn't bother to show up today!" Emma could hardly believe how irresponsible they were. "If it didn't exist in the Old World it's not necessary?"

"That's not what this is about," Snow said, at her husband's side in an instant.

"Then what is it about? You guys put yourselves in charge to lead and flipped the town on it's head. This isn't leading. This is destroying," Emma replied.

"What do you know about leading? You've barely been in charge of yourself," Wesley Sax had the nerve to say.

"Yeah, but I've been around enough tyrants to know a thing or two," Emma replied.

Emma saw the punch coming from a mile away, especially since Sax was pretty big, so therefore pretty slow. Stepping out of the way, Sax punched the glass wall of her office behind her. She resisted the urge to shove him into the glass as he howled in pain and clutched his injured hand.

"I really hope it's broken. Anybody else wanna be a hero?" Emma asked with a deadpan expression. No one moved, except Sax and that was to back away from her. "Good. I'm not releasing them unless it's done by the book. So, I need lawyers, I need an arraignment, a judge. All of that. But, I know you guys are busy harassing literally everyone in court, so…" Emma shrugged.

"Regina packed the court with villains! Just like the fire department!" Snow stomped her root. "Are you trying to help the villains win?"

Emma held up a finger. "You already won!" She looked at all of the Council members. "You won! And I think our definitions of villains differ."

Maurice scoffed. "We should've expected this after giving you the Queen as a slave. She's clearly turned you."

"Her cooking is good, but it ain't that good," Emma said.

"Oh, please. We know she does more than cook for you," Sean said and he looked smug, like she would not punch him in the face if he kept acting like a douche.

"Oh, you know what, fuck you guys. I'm not that easy and those bastards aren't going anywhere," Emma said, arms folded across her chest. There was nothing else to discuss.

They were at a stalemate for a while, standing there and staring at each other. Emma was done being pushed around. They left and Ruby slapped Emma a high-five. They laughed.

"That was sweet," Ruby said.

Emma shook her head. "We are so going to get fired." The Council probably gave themselves the power to do that and while the town was in chaos, no one would be able to stop them. Of course, the Council would not be able to stop Emma from trying to help no matter what.

Ruby shrugged. "Then we'll join the rebellion. It'll be fun."

"Dude, that would make us the bad guys."

Ruby smiled at her. "Our definitions of bad guys must differ."

Emma laughed, knowing they had just opened a can of worms. But, if Ruby was willing to rebel against people she had fought a war with, then maybe it was all worth it. Storybrooke was a hot mess, but someone needed to try to fix it.

-8-8-8-8-

The villains had done it. They put together a rally right in front of Town Hall, on a Saturday. Regina was there, accompanied by Henry. She was surprised by the turn out. Yes, the town had thirty thousand residents, but for hundreds of people to come to Town Hall to hear the villains spoke volumes as to what was going on. They came with signs and t-shirts and solidarity bands. The crowd grew speaker after speaker. And then, Nuri stepped up to the podium.

"Good afternoon, citizens of Storybrooke. I say citizens as a reminder that we have rights, like all citizens of this land. We might not have come here on our own, but we're here. We cannot recreate the Enchanted Forest here. There's too much difference. We should not recreate the Enchanted Forest here. We can build something so much more, something without that baggage, without that imbalance, without the prejudice, without that hatred.

"So, we can't stand by as a handful of people steal power for themselves to improve their lives over everyone else's. You applauded when they clapped the Queen in irons without a trial and gave her to the sheriff, making her a slave. It never occurred to you that you could be next. Or that you already are. They've moved your jobs without asking, taken your homes, replaced your children's teachers. Hell, moved your children to other schools. Or even taken your children from you!" Nuri declared.

Regina only had a moment to be embarrassed and people barely had time to agree. Then all Hell broke loose, literally. There was a rumble and the ground shook. Regina grabbed Henry close to her.

"Mom?" Henry said, wide eyes scanning the area to figure out what was going on.

"I don't know," Regina replied.

They stumbled as the ground ripped apart under their feet, dirt and chunks of pavement flying everywhere. Regina pulled Henry away just in time to miss being hit by a thick column of fire, shooting up from the ground going to the heavens. Others came up right after, erupting like geysers around them. Hot debris rained down around them and heat licked at their flesh.

Screams tore through the street as people ran for cover as the ground came apart at the seams. Fire seemed like it was everywhere as chaos flowed and from the cracks in the ground came phantoms. Hideous creatures with twisted features and fangs made of dark grey smoke. They wailed like banshees and made ears ring. Whatever they touched decayed as if it was thousands of years old, including some people. They were dust within seconds.

Then a powerful roar rattled the buildings of the town. Some windows even shattered and glass rained down with a storm of wreckage. Buildings exploded as a hole blew out of the ground like an angry volcano. For a moment, many eyes went to Adan, as that could have been his handiwork, but he was busy hurrying people away, so he was not responsible. Onyx vapor poured out of the hole, like liquid from a shaken soda, and blazed into the sky as it took on a form. Regina looked up as Emma fell to her side. Emma wrapped her arms around Regina and Henry.

"Regina, what the fuck is that thing?" Emma asked as the red-eyed giant gargoyle tore off the top of the clock tower and perched itself up there.

Regina gasped and felt like her stomach fell into her feet. "A chernabog. The closest thing to the Devil we'll probably see." They were in serious trouble.

"Oh, great, and here it is I thought I might be bored today." Emma blew out a breath, eyes staying on the chernabog. "Come on, let's get Henry to safety and then do something about that."

Regina nodded and made sure to hold onto Henry as they moved. They made a rush for Town Hall, as it was still standing. Emma herded people that way. They were not alone. Nuri, Adan, and several other so-called villains helped people to safety along with townies assisting other townies. Emma stayed close to Regina as they secured Henry in Town Hall. Several people gathered around them, as if looking for leadership.

"Okay, chernabog. Devil. Tell me more," Emma said to Regina as they watched building after building get destroyed.

Regina shrugged. "I don't know much more, beyond deadly serious and probably going to destroy the town and kill us all."

"And that's if we're lucky," Morgan said with a snicker as she eased over next to them.

"Is this really something to laugh about?" Emma asked. "Come on, you guys are witches and…" She looked at Nuri. "You're something, right?"

"I'm an ifrit, which I don't have time to explain. But, an ifrit isn't going to top a chernabog," he replied.

"Well, shit, how do we win?" Emma looked around for suggestions.

"Sheriff, you're going to want to unlock the Queen," Nuri said.

"Are you crazy?" Snow barked.

Nuri did not even glance at Snow. "The Queen is probably our only chance at defeating the chernabog. Unlock her magic. If not, the chernabog will devour anyone with darkness in their hearts."

"So, the bad guys," David said.

Regina chuckled. "You naive little shepherd. We all have such potential for darkness. Ask your wife about the spot on her heart."

"Yes, but it'll eat you and Rumple first, as it has a taste for the most potential for darkness," the Blue Fairy said.

"Oh, excuse us, while we let the damn thing eat our best chance at defeating it. That sounds like an excellent plan," Morgan replied. "You're still an arrogant, condescending bitch. I'll bet the damn thing chokes on you."

The Blue Fairy scowled. "We all know it'll eat you after Rumple and Regina."

"It's not eating anybody." Emma held her hand out for the keys to Regina's irons. Regina wasted no time handing them over. Regina had opted to wear the irons today since she was going to be in a crowd and did not want to be bothered.

Snow gasped and sputtered. "You're letting her carry the keys?"

Emma unlocked Regina's collar and cuffs. "All right, let's do this."

"We'll cover you," Nuri said, waving over any allies they might have. Magical beings of all types made moves to get closer. There were also regular people moving closer, heroes even if the books never considered them such.

Regina and Emma nodded. With a glance at each other, they ran out into the open, dodging flying detritus as the ground continued to explode. There was fire everywhere along with puddles of lava and melted metals. Buildings collapsed and were piles of rubble. Smoke already choked the air and made it hard to see and breathe.

Phantoms closed in on them, screeching loud enough to hurt everyone's ears. Emma fired at one with her gun. The bullet went through the specter and right before it was about to touch Emma, it was blasted with magic from behind them.

"Seriously?" Regina looked at Emma, who still had the nerve to be holding her gun.

Emma shrugged and holstered her weapon. "It was worth a shot."

"You are going to go sit in the corner after this," Regina said.

Ghouls turned to them, mouths gaping as if they planned to devour Regina and Emma. They barely moved as their backup arrived. Magic energy flowed around then, taking out the phantoms. Regina and Emma took off running, trying to get closer to the chernabog. They dodged columns of fire, continuing to erupt from the ground.

The chernabog turned its attention to them and Regina would have sworn it smirked at them at first, like they were a meal. But, the smirk did not stay as they drew closer. It roared and dived toward the pair. They had to duck as the massive demon flew over them and almost took their heads off with sharp talons. They threw out their hands, hitting it in the back with their magic. The chernabog roared and then turned around, throwing out its wings and flinging parked cars from its path.

"I think we pissed him off," Emma said.

"Why don't you try shooting him?" Regina replied with a scoff.

"Really? Right now? When we're about to die?" Emma asked as they jumped back, trying to avoid the chernabog. It hit Emma, knocking her to the ground. The chernabog growled and loomed over Emma as she struggled to get up.

Regina blasted the chernabog. "Hey! Leave her alone! I've got way more potential for darkness!" She flexed her hand and fired a blast of magic, hitting it square in the chest. _Shit, that didn't even make it flinch_.

The chernabog growled and Regina hit him again, in the face that time. That blow rocked it a little bit, claws digging up bits of the street, but that was not enough. Her true power was blocked. _Damn iron shackles!_ She probably still had bits of iron stuck in her flesh from how tight the bonds had been. The chernabog jumped at her and snapped its jaws, nearly taking her head off. And then it almost fell over as Emma unloaded with both hands. Regina added to it. The chernabog did not go down.

"Emma, we need to move the Moon again," Regina said. They needed to really pull into their magic, down into the depths.

"Right!" Emma dashed to her side, narrowly avoiding being hit by fire. Phantoms wailed around them, but never got close enough to touch them. At least their back up was doing their thing well.

They stood together and concentrated. The chernabog lunged for them, all teeth, claws, and glowing eyes. They exhaled and hit it with a frontal attack. The chernabog roared, falling back. It dug its feet into the ground, talons tearing up the street even more. Fires erupted and the ground rose under them as the chernabog pushed back. They grunted and growled as they did their best to stand their ground. Regina could feel a strain on her body and from the way Emma was sweating, she probably felt something similar.

"Do you feel like we're only making it worse?" Emma asked with a grimace.

"I have an idea. Light magic should hurt it since it's a creature of darkness. Give me your hand." Regina yanked Emma's hand to her without waiting.

Regina gritted her teeth as she used Emma's magic to expel any of the remaining iron from her body. The chernabog charged them again and Regina put her hand out as she felt Emma's magic surge through her. She exhaled slowly, calling forth ancient magic from deep within her.

"Regina, if you're gonna do something now would be the time!" Emma said.

Regina spread her fingers and a loud popping noise echoed through town, cracking stone, as a bright light engulfed the chernabog. It let loose an unholy scream as light devoured the landscape. The phantoms screeched, writhed, and vanished. The fires were blown out. When the flash of light died down, the chernabog laid in a rubble heap that was once the courthouse.

"What the hell was that?" Emma asked with wide eyes.

Regina rolled her shoulders. "Your light, true love magic mixed with my demi-god magic."

"Demi-god?" Emma shouted.

Regina shrugged. "Yes, we can discuss that later when we're not about to die."

Emma was about to say something, but their attention was turned to the debris. The chernabog grunted and growled as it climbed to its feet, claws flinging chunks of pavement everywhere and its wings tearing through whatever was nearby. It glared at them with hatred in its glowing, crimson eyes. They looked at each other. Regina was out of ideas.

"New plan. Come on!" Emma grabbed Regina by hand and ran off.

Regina did her best to keep pace with Emma. "What's the plan?"

"Let it chase us to the town line and then we trick it over. It's made of magic, right?"

"In theory."

"It's worth a shot. Besides, it's coming!" The chernabog was on their tail.

Thankfully, the Bug was still parked in front of the station. It was also a good thing she never locked the doors. They got in and Emma peeled off. The chernabog was right behind them until it was not. The car shook as it landed on the roof and Emma struggled to steady the vehicle. The chernabog beat on the roof, denting it on the interior. They were not going to make it, crushed to death in the Bug.

"Emma, you did your best," Regina said as the windshield exploded in front of them, Glass flew all over them.

"Regina?" Emma turned to look at her just as she vanished in a puff of purple smoke.

Regina appeared right before the town line. She hoped the chernabog was more pissed with her than Emma. It clawed at Emma through the windshield. Regina was about to call it, but Emma slammed on the brakes of the car. The chernabog flew off, going toward Regina. It reached for her, but she moved and it evaporated as it crossed the town line. Regina and Emma locked eyes.

-8-8-8-8-

Next time: the aftermath of this mess.


	18. Suffering is Optional

I don't own these characters; Disney/ABC does.

18: Suffering is Optional

Downtown Storybrooke had seen better days as far as structural damage was concerned, but Emma was sure this was the best day for the people. Well, the people who made it. The "villains" helped out the regular citizens, digging them out from debris, freeing them from tight spaces, and using magic to heal injuries. Unfortunately, some people were actually gone forever, but even with that, the villains were supportive, comforting people where necessary.

"Oh, so you didn't die," Nuri said as Emma and Regina made their way back to the heart of the disaster.

"It takes a lot more than a devil to kill us," Regina replied right before Henry hit her almost full force. Regina coughed on impact, but returned the hug immediately.

"We need to put this kid in football," Emma said as Henry yanked her into the embrace. He squeezed her with a force a little kid should not possess. Peering over him, she could see her parents approaching with the rest of the Royal Council behind them. She was not in the mood for those people, especially not while there was death and devastation around them.

"Emma!" Snow grinned, but wisely remained a couple of feet away. She seemed happy Emma had not died, but that was not enough for Emma right now. David smiled at her, but she did not react.

"What the hell was that thing? Did you stop it?" Kathryn asked.

"We definitely stopped it. No clue what it was beyond what Regina told me." Emma motioned to Regina, hoping she would take over the explanation.

"It was a devil called the chernabog. Question is how did it get here?" Regina asked, but they all could take a guess.

Emma scanned the crowd and spotted Gold with no problem, even though he was as disheveled as everyone else. He stood out in a crowd no matter what. Emma took off after him, easily blocking his path. It barely took two seconds for everyone else to crowd around him. Gold stared around them, as if trying to figure out his escape route.

"Why'd you do it, Gold?" Emma folded her arms across her chest. She gave him her meanest, iciest glare. This was serious. People were dead.

"Me?" He pressed his hand to his chest, knocking white dust off of himself. His clothes were torn and there were claw marks through his cheek and blood pouring from his side. "Why the hell would I unleash a devil that would likely devour me first?" It looked like it had tried to devour him.

Regina held up a finger. "He makes a point."

"But, I bet you know how it got here," Emma said.

"It was locked away in a protected urn in my shop," Gold replied. "And when I say locked away, I mean in a steel box under the floorboards in an iron safe. All of which had multiple locks, both key and combination."

"Then how the hell did it…?" Emma knew exactly what happened. Her head snapped away from Gold and locked on her target. She moved faster than she ever would have thought possible and tackled Neal. She punched him in the side for good measure. Again, people were dead. "You son of a bitch! What the hell did you do you bastard?"

"Hey!" Neal groaned and tried to squirm away.

She was not so easy to get away from, especially after she slugged him in the ribs a couple of times. He cried out and curled into himself with each hit, but she was not bothered by it. He was lucky she punched him rather than putting her gun in his mouth at this point.

"Yeah, hey! What did you do?" Emma grabbed him by the shoulders and slammed his head into the ground.

"Get the hell off of me! This is fucking police brutality!"

"You haven't seen brutality, you piece of shit. I'll get the hell off of you, so I can put my damn cuffs on you." Emma reached behind her, managed to get her cuffs, and cuffed him while he squirmed more. She pulled him to his feet and resisted the urge to punch him in the stomach.

"You can't arrest me! I didn't do anything! You can't prove I did anything!" Neal glared at her. Funny how now all of sudden rights mattered to him.

"You're the only one with access! You unleashed a demon to what? Kill your dad and Regina?" Emma yanked him about. No one would fault her if she slugged him in the stomach, right? Instead, she yanked him enough for him to trip and fall. _Piece of shit is lucky I don't beat the brakes off of his ass!_

Henry pushed to the front of the crowd. "You tried to kill my mom?" He glared at Neal as he struggled back to his feet.

Neal gaped at Henry for a long moment. "No! You got it all wrong! I didn't unleash the damn thing. I got it for someone. I didn't know what the hell it was, but he said it would subdue all the bad guys, get rid of all the evil. I was trying to be a hero, like you." He stared at Emma with these big, wet eyes, like he spoke the truth.

"By killing innocent people?" Emma could not believe what she was hearing. How was that heroic?

"They're not innocent! They're just like my dad!" Neal huffed and looked at his father with such hatred.

Gold's face fell. For once, his eyes showed emotion, glistening with unshed tears, and he was crushed. "Bae, I thought you forgave me." His voice even trembled. If Emma did not know him, she might even feel sorry for him. But, she knew enough about him to think he should feel lucky Neal did not want to personally shove him off of a cliff.

Neal glowered at Gold as if he was the devil among them. He probably was not wrong. "I forgive you for being a coward, but that doesn't discount you're a monster. Everything I hear about you only proves that. Every single person in this damn town has a horror story involving you. Everyone! I've seen the horrible things you do and you've just kept on doing them. I know you've been plotting even now, trying to figure out how you'll get out of taking responsibility for all the shit you've done here. You didn't change when you lost me. You just got worse and used me as an excuse, like you were doing before!"

Gold's chin wobbled and he seemed like he was on the verge of tears. "I had to get you back…"

"Well, I tried to get you back and you chose the damn dagger! Do you even get how much you destroyed? How many people you hurt? Do you even give a fuck?" It was a good question, even if Neal asked, but then again, maybe he was the best person to ask it. Gold either did not know or did not care. Maybe it was both.

"This is a cluster fuck. Who did you give the urn to after you stole it?" Emma asked, as she still had a murderer to catch then.

"I don't know his name," Neal said.

Emma frowned. "Call me crazy, but I don't believe you." She looked at Regina. "You good to handle the clean up while me and Ruby talk to this idiot?"

"Regina is not in charge! You put her back in those irons now!" Matilda said and the rest of the Council made noises of agreement.

Emma snorted, rolling her eyes. "Even if I knew where those damn irons are, Regina's never wearing them again. And what I said stands. Now, I have a mass murderer to find."

Emma was off, letting Ruby drag Neal along since she had werewolf strength. Neal tried to yank away, but got nowhere. After Ruby let him fall on his face twice, he wisely stopped struggling.

"Why the hell would you do this dumb shit? You want your dad dead that bad?" Emma asked.

Neal shook his head. "My dad died a long time ago. That monster's just going to keep destroying lives. He used to kill people in front of me, Emma. In front of his kid and go about the day like it was no big deal. I know he's still like that. I can see it in his eyes, hear it in his voice. Look at how he treats Belle. He uses people and sucks them dry. He needs to be stopped."

Emma could not call him a liar there. "And, what, everybody else is collateral damage?"

"I didn't think anyone else would be in danger. I definitely didn't think anyone else would die. He's the greatest evil in town. In the world probably. Damn thing would've gotten full off of him," Neal said.

Emma only groaned. She would hold her other questions for him when he was in the hot box. This was a serious matter, after all. For now, they needed to find the asshole who unleashed the chernabog and get that person in jail as soon as possible. Of course it turned out to be a noble bastard with the same lofty desires of being a hero and punishing the villains, even if it meant killing the whole damn town. Fucking asshole. He pretended not to know why he was even being arrested and was certain he would be out immediately.

"You're never getting out," Emma said. After all, people were dead.

-8-8-8-8-

The town called an emergency Town Hall meeting as soon as everyone was accounted for, even though everything was not fixed up just yet. It was then they learned nine people had died, five of those were so-called villains, but the meeting was called to order. Everyone felt the meeting was necessary and there would be no delay. Not the Council. The town. The citizens of Storybrooke were ready for a change.

Regina stood in the back, off to the side with Henry. Emma was still dealing with Neal and the chernabog mess. Regina could only wonder how this would end. She put it out of her mind that Neal had no problem with possibly killing her in his efforts to stop Rumple. He was not the first person to think her death would solve problems. Hell, she had considered that herself several times in her life.

"People, we need to settle down!" Nuri bellowed over the din without much luck.

A shrill whistle went off and that quieted people down. Everyone turned to the source of the noise. A tiny woman, who was an elf in the Old World, and an English teacher in Storybrooke had the whistle dangling from her lips.

"That's how you do it, muscles," she told Nuri with a wink.

Nuri cleared his throat. "Yes, thank you." He scanned the crowd. "Fellow denizens of Storybrooke, it's time for us to band together and stand up for what we want, what we need, and what we deserve! We deserve a fair government that works for all of us, that protects all of us, and that follows the rules while also enforcing just rules equally!" There were cheers.

"You don't have that power," Edmund Kent said.

Nuri threw his hands out. "_We_ have that power! We are in a place that gives us that power! You can't upend our lives anymore!" The crowd roared.

"We won't be collared like the Queen!" someone yelled. There were more cheers.

"We won't stand for more sanctioned violence!"

"We won't stand for corruption!"

"We won't stand for being pushed around and mistreated!"

"We won't stand for old status being a reason for anything!"

"This will not be another Enchanted Forest!"

Regina would love to see these people pull this off. For every person who wanted to stay in Storybrooke and enjoy the New World, there was someone who wanted to go back to the Enchanted Forest, or at least make Storybrooke as close to the Enchanted Forest as much they could. She was not sure if there was even a happy medium for them, but they owed it to everyone to try.

"You can't just change things," Maurice said.

Morgan moved, like wafting smoke, gesturing to the Council. "It's funny how it worked for you."

"We didn't just change things. We're meant to be in charge!" Wesley puffed out his chest and beat it with his fist, like a gorilla.

Nuri stepped to him and snorted through his nose, breathing out tiny flames and smoke. He towered over Wesley, looking down on the former king in a way that had to be poetic justice. "You put yourselves in charge during a time of crisis, but proved you can't handle the power. We're putting things right. Your Council has done nothing for this town. You put your own people in positions of power," Nuri said.

Wesley did not back down. "Like Regina did with you? With the other villains?" He pointed to a cluster of so-called villains by the wall.

Bianca exploded on that and she threw her hands up as she stepped out of the crowd. "We're not villains! Some of us were cursed back in the Enchanted Forest and no one cared to help us then and now you're trying to say we're villains. We're all trying to live our lives! We have things to live for and don't act like you're just coming after us. We've seen what you've done to people from low status back in the Enchanted Forest! No more!" The crowd bellowed and raised their hands up with her.

"For all us being villains, I saw a lot more of us trying to help out there than you, which explains why we lost members of our community while you lot still breathe," Melanie added. There were mumbled agreements there. It was probably hard for the townspeople to stomach the idea that villains made the ultimate sacrifice to help them.

"Hey, we helped, too!" David stepped up, pointing to himself. Blood ruined his shirt from his left shoulder down his arm. Knowing him, he was injured and probably had not gotten looked at yet. He looked worse for wear compared to the rest of the Council. So, he probably helped because that was who he was, but most of the Council probably saved their own skins and that was it.

"You're supposed to help! Heroes don't get credit for doing what they're supposed to!" Adan roared, stepping by Nuri. He was even taller than Nuri.

"Villains shouldn't get credit for suddenly being decent people!" Snow said as she went to stand by her husband. She was covered in dust, hair a mess, and blood coming down the side of her head.

"But, you all want to act like we're not decent people and therefore don't deserve decent treatment," Morgan pointed out.

Regina patted Henry's shoulder. "Let's go. This doesn't concern us." Again, she was not sure how they would work this out, but however it went, it would not affect them much.

"Don't you want to see who wins?" Henry asked.

"This sort of thing will take more time than we'll be willing to stand here." She was not sure how long, but there was no way there would be an answer now, especially not with the argument it seemed to be devolving into.

Henry sighed, shoulders slumping. "I guess I'll find out what happens later then."

Regina felt that would be best, especially since she was not sure how calm the meeting would remain. She and Henry eased out of the meeting, but could hear the shouting even as they hit the sidewalk. Regina was tempted to check on Emma, but decided to let her work. She and Henry walked toward their home.

"Want to talk about your father?" Regina asked. She could not imagine what sort of blow that was. Henry wanted to believe in that man so hard and then he went and did this. The betrayal probably gutted Henry.

Henry let loose a breath and rubbed his face. "I don't even know what to think there. Was Gold such a bad dad?"

"I think it more has to do with Gold being a bad person. It sounds like he was a good dad when he was a dad, but we both know that parenting takes work all the time. Gold, as the Dark One, probably didn't know how to be a parent all the time, or even most of the time. Your father must have witnessed his father do some awful things. Maybe he thought this was the best way to stop those awful things. He wanted to save people."

"Heroes don't kill people."

Regina was not sure what to say to that. There were so many different answers. "Well, Henry, Neal is from some place where heroes sometimes did kill people, if it means saving more people. It seems like your father wanted to save people."

Henry gave her a small smile. "Thanks for standing up for my dad."

Regina shook her head. "I just want you to be happy." She might never like Neal, but Henry deserved a chance to work out Neal on his own. Besides, when she stopped and thought about it, she understood Henry more than she liked. How many times had she jumped at a chance to bond with her mother?

Henry scratched the top of his head and his face scrunched up. He had a question, but it took him a minute to get it out. "Can Emma really arrest him for trying to kill Gold?"

"If she has the evidence, which she really does since he said it in front of everyone. He might be in luck. There's no prosecutors in town anymore." The Royal Council fired them all. "I'm not even sure what happened to the judges, but they're gone as well."

"Really? Is everywhere like my school?"

"Very much." Some places were much worse than his school.

He let out a long breath from the side of his mouth. "It'll get better, right?"

"Perhaps." It seemed like there was a fifty-fifty chance.

"I hope school doesn't get messed up again."

"You know we'll do our best to make things work out." Not that Regina knew what she could do. Still, she would not let the town fall apart around Henry. She would not let it get this dangerous ever again and she knew Emma felt the same.

He nodded. They got home and were not sure what to do with themselves. They ended up sitting on the sofa and reading at opposite ends of the couch. The quiet was interrupted by a simple text. Emma let her know "don't bother to cook."

"I hope that doesn't mean she's not coming home," Regina said as she put her phone down.

Henry looked up from his book. "Hmm?"

"Emma told me not to make dinner."

"She's probably gonna get takeout. She wouldn't tell you not to feed me and we all know you wouldn't let me or Emma go without dinner."

That made sense. "True. Will any place be open? Everyone is probably still arguing and we didn't fix some buildings." Magic could handle a lot, but it would have been impossible to correct so much destruction in a short time between the chernabog being defeated and the Town Hall meeting being called.

Henry waved that off. "Emma knows takeout."

Regina laughed at that. It seemed like something that would fall into Emma's expertise. Emma showed up a few minutes later with a bucket of fried chicken, biscuits, coleslaw, mash potatoes, corn on the cob, and a half gallon of sweet tea that was probably more sweet than tea. She laid it all out on the coffee table.

Regina frowned. "Emma." This was highly inappropriate. Dinner was to be eaten at the table.

"I needed some serious comfort food and I know you didn't have chicken for this," Emma said.

"I could've gone to the store," Regina replied.

Emma shook her head. "It was destroyed."

"I could've fixed it."

"I know. I told them I'd ask you to stop by tomorrow."

Regina chuckled. "I suppose. Do we have to eat this in the living room?"

"I think it works. It's cool to eat in front of the TV sometime, even if the TV isn't on," Emma said.

Regina did not have a counter for that. This seemed to be something Emma needed and it did not hurt any of them to eat in their own living room. But, there needed to be plates at the very least. She went to the kitchen for plates and glasses.

Emma laughed. "It was killing you, wasn't it?" She winked at Regina.

"I need some semblance of civility." Regina placed a plate and a glass in front of each of them as they gathered around the coffee table. Henry eased onto the floor, leaving Regina and Emma a chance to sit next to each other on the sofa. "As you well know, outside is chaos, so inside we all like a little order."

There was another laugh from Emma. "You know, I was thinking, wanna be a deputy? We make a pretty good team." She smiled at Regina. Regina would not be able to resist, but was saved from answering right away.

"So, what's happening with my dad?" Henry asked as he loaded pieces of chicken on his plate. Regina made sure he got some corn and some coleslaw, even enough it appeared to be more mayonnaise than anything else.

Emma glanced at him. "Nothing right now. I'm holding him until I can get him in front of a judge or somebody. I'm sorry, Henry. I know he was trying to be a hero, but he went about it the wrong way." She reached over and put her hand on his.

Henry nodded and flipped his hand to hold Emma's. "The real wrong way. People died."

Emma sighed and her shoulders fell, along with her head, and she took her hand away. "I know."

Henry dropped his head and looked at Emma through his eyelashes. "Do you think he'll go to jail?"

With a heavy sigh, Emma rubbed her face with both hands and then sat up straight, as if she were trying to be strong. Strong for their son. "I don't know. I don't know how this place works anymore."

Regina reached over and rubbed Emma's knee. "We know how this place…" She motioned around them. "We know how this house works and that's the best start."

"Yeah." Emma and Henry nodded. For now, it would have to be enough for them.

"Home is our safe haven," Regina said.

"You bet it is," Emma replied as she put an arm around Regina's waist.

Home was enough. The outside world would probably always be crazy. They could not control that, but they could control the house and how they treated each other. So, they had a nice dinner and just loved each other.

-8-8-8-8-

Emma was not sure what to expect when she stepped outside, but the town was not on fire, so that was a good thing. The sky was clear for the most part and the few clouds out seemed very natural. She did not hear any screaming, yelling, or anything. So, it was not the end of the world, but she was not sure if things were as calm as it seemed.

Henry was going to stay home for a couple of days until she and Regina could determine how the town was. They had advised other parents to do the same with their children, but schools were still open like before, just in case. For the people who were out, they seemed to be trying to clean up, not just the mess from the chernabog, but the mess of the town in general. So far, so good.

Arriving at the station, she found everything the way she left it. It was good to see her prisoners still in their cells. Ruby was chatting away another redhead.

"Hey, Emma. Have you met Morgana yet? Well, she goes by Morgan here, but anyway. Did you know we assumed she was dead in the Old World," Ruby said.

Emma tilted her head. "You look familiar."

"Doctor performing life saving procedures on your baby mama," Morgan replied with a grin.

Emma narrowed her gaze on Morgan. "And why would you save my baby mama?" She did not mean to be suspicious, but anything involving Regina right now got her hackles up.

Morgan put her hands up and laughed. "Funny you ask that and not what I'm doing here."

Emma yelped and waved her hands. "Hey, both of those things are equally important." After all, Morgan could have been trying to use saving Regina's life to get a favor from her or from Regina.

"Yeah, if you're in love with Regina," Morgan replied.

"Oh!" Ruby laughed. "She nailed you!" Ruby had the nerve to do finger guns at Emma.

Morgan smiled at her. "To answer both questions, I know Regina from the Old World and like her enough to help. For a short while, I sort of adopted her, witch to witch, but also both of us were looking for something the other could provide. A sort of parental guidance and a child to dote upon. But, she was already married to Leopold and there was no way he'd let her get away and Rumple was already whispering in her ear, poisoning her against any and everyone, myself included. I didn't think it was fair for Ruby to watch a man who tried to kill her as collateral damage." She motioned to Ruby.

"I wasn't trying to kill her!" Neal banged on the cell door.

"Yeah, you weren't trying to kill everybody, but still managed to put us all at risk," Ruby said, gnashing her teeth at him. "You don't know anyone's past here. You don't know what some of us have done, even though we still like to believe we're good fucking people."

"It was only supposed to kill the villains. We were doing a good deed," the stupid noble, Reginald of the all the names, said. He had been defending himself more than they needed to hear, especially once he learned he was not going to get out like he first assumed.

"Killing good people isn't a good dead. The villains who died did a good deed. They saved people. The other people who died were good people. The people who put themselves on the line to make sure other people got to safety were the real heroes and those are good people. We're all just trying to be good people," Ruby replied with a growl.

"I don't tell myself that lie anymore, but I still didn't want to die by the chernabog. Supposedly, it rips your energy from your body and devours that before devouring you, all of which sounds messy. It seems like a very unpleasant way to die," Morgan said.

Ruby nodded. "Definitely does. I don't want to die anytime soon, but death by summoned devil seems especially harsh. I doubt anyone deserved that."

Morgan folded her hands in her lap. "Good thing for us Regina and Emma saved the day." She smiled at Emma.

"Good in the sense that we didn't die or good in the sense of viva la resistance?" Emma asked.

Morgan shrugged. "Why not both?"

Emma did not see anything wrong with that. "How is the revolution going?"

"The Council won't be cowed by these villains!" Reginald barked. The ladies all rolled their eyes.

"They have to comply or go to war. The Council doesn't want that, not with a good chunk of the citizenry being with us and definitely not with magic being around, especially with Regina tapping into that goddess power. It won't be pretty. We all know if she can stun a chernabog, she is not to be fucked with," Morgan replied.

"Do we all know that? Because I feel like I didn't know that." Emma pressed her hand to her chest. She had not talked to Regina about that yet. It seemed pretty inconsequential considering everything else.

"I only knew it as a rumor. Supposedly that was why she was the chosen one to cast Dark Curse," Ruby said.

Morgan nodded. "That is why the Dark One hunted her and fed her to the darkness. He groomed her to be his creature because he needed her power to use the Curse."

"That's why he needs to be stopped!" Neal snarled as he hit the bars again.

"Yeah, but you don't need to kill all of us in the damn process. Do you understand people died yesterday? There's blood on your hands, even if all you did was hand the urn to that idiot," Ruby said as she nodded toward Reginald.

Emma was glad they escaped the day with no war, but Neal definitely did not understand the consequences of his stupid decision. Dealing with him for the day was very unpleasant. He refused to accept responsibility for the people who died. Reginald remained proud of the fact that five "villains" died. Never mind the fact that they died trying to save people and never mind the fact that four other people lost their lives and doubly never mind the fact that dozens of people were injured.

Emma needed some lawyers to materialize soon. She did not want to have to deal with them for much longer. She also wanted them to be charged with murder. Reginald was responsible for murder and Neal was at the least an accessory to murder.

After a long day of trying to sort things out, Ruby shooed Emma out of the door. Emma did not put up much of a struggle. Emma let out a long sigh when she crossed the threshold into the house. The place smelled like absolute heaven in the form of apple pie. She could not get to the dining room fast enough.

"Tell me there's a slice for me," Emma said as she flopped down next to Henry, who had a mouthful of pie.

Regina eased a slice with a scoop of ice cream in front of Emma. Emma was ready to cry and she had not even tasted it yet. Of course, it was as good as expected. What was unexpected was a knock at the door.

"You expecting someone?" Emma asked Regina.

Regina shrugged. "A lynch mob?"

"Not funny, especially since people think there might still be a war." Emma got up. "Both of you stay here." She went to the door and glanced out of the glass to the side. Her parents were at the door. She was not sure if she should open it. They collared Regina, after all.

"We come in peace," Snow said loud enough to be heard clearly.

Emma sighed and opened the door. Snow and David stood before, hunched over, faces drawn with lines under their eyes. They looked defeated. It did not bring Emma any joy, not that she thought it would. These were her parents. She wanted happiness for them, like she wished they wanted for her.

Emma motioned for them to come in. "Want some pie? It's apple." Okay, maybe she wanted to bother them a little.

Snow yelped and David glared. Emma held her hands up in surrender. She pointed to the living room as Regina and Henry stepped over to the scene. For a moment, everyone stood there, looking at each other and then they all seemed to agree to move at the same time. Everyone relocated to the living room, where pie awaited. Neither Snow nor David objected or said anything about the pie. Something was up.

"Is it safe to assume the Royal Council was disbanded?" Regina asked, barely containing her smugness.

"Could you not look so gleeful about it?" Snow scowled.

"Well, it was a poor idea. Storybrooke isn't the Enchanted Forest and it can't be run by committee when the committee has so many different agendas and still like to pretend they're running their kingdom when there is no kingdom," Regina replied.

"Look outside isn't on fire and the town looks like it's still in one piece, so what happened?" Emma asked.

"As Regina said, the Council was disbanded. We didn't want to divide the town," Snow said. Emma managed to hold in a laugh as Snow continued. "But, that's not why we're here."

"Then why are you here?" Emma asked.

Snow sighed and David's shoulders dropped. They took each other's hands. Emma was not sure why, but her stomach dropped into her feet and she took Regina's hand. Regina gave her a supportive squeeze.

"We're focusing on what matters," David replied, staring at her.

Emma fought the urge to roll her eyes. "And that is?" She was not sure what mattered to them. David and Snow glanced at each other before turning back to Emma.

"We've been ignoring you, Emma. We haven't meant it, but we had a lot of excuses for why and we know it's not right," Snow said.

"Why? Why are you ignoring me? Do I matter so little to you? Was I just here to break the Curse?" Emma asked. It felt like that. She was a means to an end and nothing more. She wanted parents, they wanted a savior, and even that did not seem like a good thing from her end.

"Of course not!" David shook his head. "You're our daughter." He motioned between him and Snow.

"We just don't know what that means," Snow said, her voice small.

"Excuse me?" Emma was one false move away from throwing them out.

David took a deep breath and his mouth trembled before he managed to speak. "You don't really need us, Emma. You're a grown woman. You're independent, successful, a hero, and even with a family of your own. You don't need us and we don't know what to do…" His voice cracked and tears already fell from Snow's eyes. He licked his lips and swallowed hard. "It's hard to come to grips that our baby girl doesn't need us and we've been so lost on what to do."

Emma could not believe what she was hearing. "What are you talking about? You're my parents. Of course I need you! You're parents!" What the hell was wrong with them?

A sob escaped Snow and she wiped her nose with the back of her hand. "It doesn't seem like you need us for anything. Yes, there were pockets when we were stuck in the Enchanted Forest, but you adapted, adjusted. You're flexible to the point you can survive all of these new things that come at you. We don't adjust that quickly. We didn't even help in Neverland."

"Hell, I almost died and sidetracked the whole mission. Because of me, you almost lost Henry," David said.

Snow jumped, pointing to herself. "And we lost Henry in the first place! We've actually been a burden to you. You do everything without us. I thought in the Enchanted Forest, maybe you'd need us, but when we saw you in Neverland with Regina, it was clear. We can't do anything for you and we thought if we could at least help you find your Happy Ending, we'd mean something to you."

Regina rubbed her head and she looked pained, as she often did when in the same room with Snow and David. "That's not how parenting works."

"At all," Emma said, her face frozen in disbelief. "If I thought like you guys, I'd have left Henry the second we stepped off of the Jolly Roger. Just because I can do things without you doesn't mean I want to. Henry can do his homework without me, but he still asks for me to help just to be with me. He doesn't need us to watch movies with him, but he asks us to. He has friends he could play _Dungeons and Dragons _with, but he asks us. Hell, he taught us, so we could all play together. Support isn't about what you can do for some as much just being there."

"It's not just me making an effort with them," Henry said. "Mom cooks breakfast and dinner every single day and we eat as a family. Emma plays video games with me. Me and Mom just spent the day on the couch reading. We all make an effort to be with each other."

"Because we all need each other, emotionally, spiritually," Regina said.

"We have to be available to each other. We're not using each other. Family doesn't use each other and they don't ignore each other if they feel they're useless," Emma said. It was strange for her to be giving a family talk, but she felt like she knew so much now.

Henry tilted his head and his face scrunched up, like he just realized something. "Wait, wait, wait, you noticed Mom was the only help Emma needed in Neverland? Did you guys give Mom to Emma because you knew they were on their way to being family?"

Emma never would have thought of that, but Henry was onto something. Her parents just admitted to noticing Emma and Regina in Neverland. How weird was this? They were trying to help again, but did it in such a crazy way. Was it because they were from the Enchanted Forest? Or was there just something genuinely wrong with her parents?

Snow gave an awkward half-smile. "We knew Regina could and would be there for Emma, for you. She showed that in Neverland." She looked at Regina and smiled through her tears. "Thank you."

"You're thanking me? You sit here and you know how necessary parents are, as you both have lost them, and you left Emma drifting in the wind with me?" Regina's brow was wrinkled, like she did not know what was going on.

"We thought the best thing we could do was step away. Yes, we've both lost parents, but I also know how a parent can hurt you by doing the wrong thing," David replied.

Snow looked at Regina. "You know it, too. We didn't want to hurt her."

"You didn't support me, so yeah, that hurt," Emma pointed out.

"We were still trying to do what was best for the town, but we see how even that was a mistake. You were right about so much," Snow said. And that was huge. Snow never admitted she was wrong, even when it was glaringly obvious. "At least you had Regina and Henry with you."

"Regina, Henry, and Ruby."

Snow smiled. "Yes, Ruby's always good to have by your side. For you, Regina appears to be the same."

Emma hated how she melted on the inside as her parents acknowledged Regina being good for her. She wanted to be angry with them, but she knew it would not do any good. She did not want to accept their apology just yet, though.

"I appreciate you both coming here. I'm happy you talked to me finally, but I'm not sure I'm ready to accept you now. I mean, you gave Regina to me. Yeah, it was to take care of me, but you gave her to me, knowing I wouldn't like it, knowing it wasn't the right way to do things," Emma said. But, there was a pain in her heart. It would hurt to be without them, but it might hurt to be with them as well.

Regina nodded, but patted Emma's knee. "They did do that, but I've been trying my best to take care of you, so let me take care of this."

Emma looked at her. "What do you want to do?"

Regina pinned Snow and David with a hard look. "You're staying for dinner and a board game after. There won't be any talk about the government, the Curse, heroics, or forgiveness. Any other subjects are welcomed. You have to understand you're not off the hook for anything you've done, but this is an open attempt. If all goes well, you'll come back tomorrow for more of the same. At some point, we'll teach you how to play D&D."

Emma smiled, happy Regina took charge there. She brought Regina's hand to her lips and kissed her knuckles. If her parents had a problem with her being with Regina in the open they would have to deal with it, but they did not even flinch. With luck they were on their way to healing and maybe the town was as well.

-8-8-8-8-

Next time: the town without the Council.


	19. Men do not

I don't own these characters; Disney/ABC does.

19: Men do not

"How did we come full circle?" Regina asked as she strode into the mayor's office with Emma by her side. It did not make any sense. Why in the hell did these people suddenly trust her? Was this a trick?

Emma shrugged and put her arm around Regina's waist. "Apparently, you save the town with no one asking, they start thinking you care. Crazy, right?"

"Well, I don't." Regina folded her arms across her chest and frowned. Well, she felt like it was a frown, but from the way Emma was looking at her, with barely concealed glee, Regina knew she was pouting. _Damn it, she makes me pout instead a scowl when I'm upset_. She needed to save this conversation before Emma said something about her pout. "At least they didn't change my decor." Thank the gods for small favors.

"Yeah, they were too busy wrecking the town. Too bad they didn't let me scoop you up as a deputy," Emma said and she, of course, scooped Regina up literally.

Regina squealed and she was so thankful the door was closed. No one would ever respect or fear her again if they heard that noise. But, Emma pressed her close and Regina could not care less if anyone heard or saw now. This was paradise.

"If you want to boss me around me, you only have to wait for us to go home," Regina said.

Emma made a low, rumbling noise from deep in her chest. She kissed Regina's cheek and Regina smiled. Then, there was a look in her eye, sternness that made Regina's insides quiver. Regina practically melted as Emma kissed her lips, commanded her mouth to open and let her tongue in. Regina moaned and clutched Emma around the shoulders. When Emma pulled away, Regina knew she was pouting again from the way Emma grinned at her.

"You sure you're up for this, Madam Mayor? I know you're not interested in being in charge again," Emma said.

"Not at the moment, no. You keep kissing me like that and we're going home," Regina replied.

Emma chuckled. "No, I can't do that to everybody. But, in all seriousness, are you okay with this?"

Regina put her hand on Emma's cheek. "Thank you for asking, but I'm willing to try. Mostly because I don't plan to run things with an iron fist this time and I'm not sure if I trust anyone else to do this properly with the way the nobles acted. And maybe, just maybe, this time around, I care a little bit. But, only a little bit. I mean, we do need it to be safe for Henry to go to school and walk Main Street without needing one of us there."

Emma laughed once again and grinned, like she was about to call Regina on that statement. "We do need safety for the kid, no doubt about it. We can start worrying about normal things with him this time around."

Regina nodded. "Speaking of time, you should go to work, so we get home at a decent time."

Emma's grin grew for some reason. "Aw, you are ready to be the boss again."

"Only here." The idea of Emma ordering her around at home would probably never lose its appeal.

Emma gave her another kiss, one a little less steamy and put Regina back on the ground. But, she held onto Regina's hand. They got lost in each other's eyes for a long moment.

"I'm going to miss you during the day," Emma said.

Regina's heart fluttered, but she pushed Emma a little. "You left me everyday for work. Today is no different. Stop trying to be romantic."

Emma wagged her eyebrows. "It's working. Now, gimme a kiss and say bye."

Regina tried so hard to glare at Emma, but it had no effect. Emma puckered her lips and, of course, Regina kissed her and bid her farewell with what she was certain was hearts in her eyes. Emma left with that giant grin. Regina had to taper down a giddy feeling.

"You're too old to be acting like this." That did not stop her from feeling the way she did, so she decided to try to distract herself until the emotion passed.

Regina turned her attention to the mayoral office and took a moment to re-familiarize herself with the space. She had been elected back to the office after a special election not even a week ago. She had not run, but stopping the chernabog with Emma left an impression. It probably helped that she rebuilt much of the downtown area with her magic.

There was also a sense that most people wanted the town to go back to the way it used to be, normal and stable. Yes, they understood before they had been mind-controlled, but still a sense of normalcy would probably help until they could really decide on how much of the Enchanted Forest could be brought to Storybrooke without turning the place upside down. Regina loved that idea, more for Henry than herself. Children deserved a safe environment to grow in. So, Regina accepted a position she did not ask for, and did not really desire.

For her first day back, she wanted to get important positions restaffed and make sure municipal departments were up in running. Despite what the Royal Council had thought, garbage collection was important, as was having a fully staffed and functioning fire department and sheriff's station. Postal workers were needed and she wanted schools back in order as soon as humanly possible. Before she realized, Emma was back, standing before her with lunch from _Granny's_.

"Is it already noon?" Regina asked.

Emma chuckled as she sat down at the desk. "It's almost two. I messaged you a few times and you didn't answer. You must be working hard."

Regina shrugged, but reached for her phone. She definitely got sucked into her work as she missed almost a dozen texts from Emma and a few from other people, concerned about the town. She would respond later. Her stomach rumbled as Emma slid lunch in front of her and then gave her a root beer soda. She frowned, but Emma grinned, so she accepted it.

"How is your day going?" Emma asked as she gathered her burger in her hands. It was going to be a mess, but Regina did not bother mentioning that.

Regina mixed her grilled chicken and spanish rice. "Quickly apparently. I didn't realize it was so late. I approved your new budget. You should hire more deputies immediately."

Emma nodded through a massive bite of her burger and then processed to show her lack of table manners. "On it. Me and Ruby already know who we want. We just couldn't hire them before because they were bad guys or whatever."

"Yes, well, it seems most people just want to live life here, especially if they never make it back to the Enchanted Forest," Regina replied. "And stop talking with your mouthful. It's disgusting."

Emma scowled, but swallowed the rest of her bite before continuing. "I don't get what's so great about the place. I, for one, will be happy to never get attacked by an ogre again."

Regina gave her a soft smile before enjoying some of her lunch. Her stomach practically purred as she ate. She had exhausted herself on paperwork and official phone calls. Who knew that was a thing. "It's home. It's why regardless of how annoying you find this place, you'll never leave."

Emma's face twisted up and she bit into her burger again, as if to have an excuse not to talk about that for a long moment. "So, you want to go back there?"

Regina could not help making a disgusted noise. "No. I'm quite happy here. I, like others, have many things I appreciate here." Nothing good had come to her in the Enchanted Forest, but here she got her family. She got a son, a girlfriend, and a chance at happiness. She would be buried here.

Emma smiled. "Aw, you appreciate me."

Regina rolled her eyes and snorted. "I meant Henry."

Emma's smile did not go away. "Sure you did." She ate a little bit more of her burger and some of her fries. "That's why you said you didn't want to be my villain anymore. You love me."

Regina did not hesitate. "I do." She stole a fry from Emma's plate.

The smile on Emma's face was beyond bright and her eyes went wide. Regina smirked over the expression. Emma pouted and slumped in the chair a bit.

"That is a romance foul. You can't tell me you love me while I'm teasing you," Emma said.

"I can tell you I love you whenever because I love you." Regina stole another fry.

A blush flared up on Emma's face. "That's not fair."

"Oh, darling, you know I'm not fair." She hit Emma with the best set of bedroom eyes she could muster.

Emma groaned. "No, and it might be one of the things I love about you." She smirked, winked, and then ate more of her food.

Regina scowled. "You like when I'm mean to you."

"Sometimes, yes. It's hot. But, it's like you like me getting in your face and getting on your nerves."

Regina wished she could deny that, but it would be a lie. Emma's personality put her under Regina's skin. She could not sooner peel that layer away then she could peel away her own nerves. Emma was part of her and always would be. She did not mind. She hoped it was the same for Emma.

"I do love you, Emma, on so many different levels," Regina said.

Emma's grin was enough to make Regina feel like she could float off into space without the aid of magic. "I love you on a bunch of levels, too. You hit every box for me, babe."

Regina's brow furrowed. "I'm not sure what that means, but it sounds good." She turned her attention back to her food.

Emma snickered and nodded. "It's a good thing. You kinda complete me."

Regina sat up a little straighter. She would never get used to feeling good about herself through pleasing Emma, but she liked it. She also liked having lunch with Emma. They ate a little in silence.

"Can we make this a habit?" Regina asked.

Emma twisted her mouth up and must have noticed she had a spot of ketchup on the side of her mouth. She tried to get it with her tongue, but Regina leaned across her desk and wiped it away with a napkin. "Make what a habit?" Emma asked.

Regina motioned to their now empty containers. "Lunch."

Emma nodded. "Oh, sure. I'd love to. In fact, I'd like you to leave it all to me. You always handle breakfast and dinner. Lemme get lunch, okay?"

"All right, but if you want to try your hand at other meals every now and then, let me know."

"Sure. I don't have as much knowledge as you in cooking, but I'll do my best. It's nice to treat you every now and then. So, yeah, I can definitely handle lunch for us. But, now, I gotta get back to work. My boss can be a real hard ass about these things." Emma winked at her again.

Regina rolled her eyes, but Emma laughed. Emma went around the desk and kissed Regina farewell. Regina was happy she did not have any meetings because she could not stop smiling. _Love is a strange thing_.

-8-8-8-8-

Emma walked across the street back to the sheriff's station, shoulders thrown back with confidence. The sound of Ruby laughing greeted her as soon as she stepped through the door. Emma glared at Ruby's desk, but Ruby was not there. Instead, she was at Emma's desk; the one outside of her private office.

"You should see your smile. That had to be a good lunch," Ruby said.

"Get your mind out of the gutter. We just had lunch, and she approved our budget," Emma replied. But, maybe one day, lunch would involve something a little more. After all, Regina could be naughty when she wanted to be. But, that was something to do when the town was normal.

Ruby scoffed. "Really? You sure you didn't add a little extra to lunch to get that budget approved?" She wiggled her eyebrows.

Emma snorted. "Regina's just trying to get the town back to normal." She glanced over at their empty cells. Their prisoners were before a judge right now. Emma did not have the stomach to go and Ruby stuck around for moral support. David had been the one to take the prisoners to court and he even came when she was not around, so she did not have to deal with seeing him and having an awkward interaction. It was like he was learning.

Ruby folded her hands in front of her. "What is normal?" It seemed like a serious question, not in with her teasing.

Emma dropped into a nearby chair and shrugged. "Hell if I know. I just know we finally get more help around here. I'm so tired." She would take a few days off the moment she felt her deputies were good enough to handle things on their own. As soon as she got some deputies anyway.

Ruby laughed, shoulders shaking with mirth. "Tell that to the smile on your face."

"Excuse me for loving the mother of my kid." Emma threw her hands up.

Ruby laughed more. "Hey, let's start calling back candidates!"

Emma was fine with that and they spent the rest of the day preparing to hire at least two deputies tomorrow. There are people who agreed to come in for interviews. It should not have felt like a miracle, but it did. She and Ruby high-fived every single time something went their way.

"I gotta help Granny do this with waitresses when I get home. She's got more applications than she knows what to do with now," Ruby said.

"It's good that people are open to waitressing now," Emma said.

Ruby nodded. "I'm more enthused that people are open to taking sanitation work. You don't want to know what life is like for me when there's garbage stacked to the sky."

Emma winced. "I can only imagine. With luck, this is the start of something good." Ruby nodded in agreement with that.

-8-8-8-8-

David came in toward the end of the day, one prisoner light. He had done them a favor and walked their prisoners to court earlier since a few judges, lawyers, and other court personnel had returned to their jobs. Emma felt like she would have beaten Neal to death without the cell bars between them, especially considering how he kept acting like what happened was not his fault and how he was trying to be the hero there.

Emma almost fell out of her chair while Ruby opened the cell. David returned the man they had. Where the hell was Neal, though?

"What happened to Neal?" Emma asked, trying her best not to make it a demand or sound like she was accusing David of anything.

David sighed and shook his head. "Neal sang a sad song and the judge thought he was remorseful, so he let him go."

"Let him go?" Emma repeated the words as if they did not make sense because they did not! Neal's actions got people killed! Nine people were dead. "People died!" Her eyes burned, like she was about to cry.

David held up his hands. "I know, I know. The judge felt Neal didn't know that was going to happen. He basically let him go for being ignorant of his actions."

"That doesn't excuse the fact that people died!"

David moved before Emma even realized. He grabbed her into a hug and held her tight. It was everything she imagined a hug from a father should be. Where had this come from? It was so much more powerful than any other time he hugged her. It was finally like he understood.

"Are you okay with the judge letting him go?" David asked, but it felt deeper than that and simpler than that at the same time. It was "are you okay?" in general, in life, and with this fucked up situation.

Emma sucked in a breath and returned the hug, held onto David like he was the only thing that made sense in life right now. It should not feel so good to have her father ask her a simple question, but it was like he finally acknowledged her emotions. David saw her as a person.

"I can't believe he's getting away with this. People died," Emma said again.

David caressed the back of her head. "I know, but you have the man who was responsible."

"The man that armed him is just as responsible and he managed to con the judge into thinking otherwise."

David nodded. "Yeah. He really played up the whole 'I didn't know it would go after everybody' thing."

Emma pulled back to look at David. "You don't think this was the right thing?"

"No. Like you said, people died. And, maybe I don't like Regina, but I've let her live enough because Snow loves her to be a little disgusted that Henry's own father would write her off to kill Rumple."

Emma took a deep breath. "That sucks."

David nodded. "It does. Don't take it personally, though. You did the right thing. You stopped him. You put him in jail. You did what you were supposed to do."

Emma's eyes stung as she took a deep breath to maintain control over herself. "Thank you for saying so. And thanks for being here."

David gave her a smile. "I want to be here for you, Emma. I'm learning how to be here for you. You're my daughter and I love you."

Emma only smiled. She did not have the guts to say something like that to her parents yet, not sure if they would somehow mess up and abandon her yet again. But, still, those three words felt like the beginning of stitches on a gaping wound.

-8-8-8-8-

After work, Emma went to pick Regina up, finding her focused on documents on her desk, scribbling on a close notepad. The people of Storybrooke were not stupid for forcing Regina back into the position of mayor. Regina was already taking the job super-serious. It was admirable considering how people treated her while she was a slave. Hell, for having the nerve to make her a slave in the first place. _And they have the nerve to think she's the villain_.

"Babe, you can't fix everything in one day," Emma said as she leaned on the desk. There were papers, folders, and books everywhere. _I wonder if she knows about Neal_.

Regina shook her head and motioned to her pile of work with her free hand as her other jotted down something on her notepad. "This is beyond a mess. Beyond all of the paperwork, I've gotten calls all throughout the day from departments with skeleton crews. And don't even get me started about the damn judge with Baelfire."

Emma winced. "You heard about that, huh?"

"I spoke with her at length about the decision. After all, nine citizens died as a result of his actions. She took it as Neal handing Reginald a gun, not knowing it was loaded and not knowing he'd use it to kill people."

Emma scowled. "She believed his con, basically."

Regina sighed. "It certainly sounds that way. She reviewed your notes and interviews with Neal and pointed out that he maintained he didn't know what the chernabog was capable of. Are you all right with it?"

Emma's shoulders dropped. "You know what, you're okay. We're okay. I'll worry about his dumb-ass later. We should get going. It's already a little late. What are you still working on?" She motioned to all of the paper surrounding Regina.

Regina shook her head as she turned her attention back to her paperwork. "I don't think the Royal Council did a bit of administration work."

Emma had no doubt about that. "Sounds both boring and important, so they probably didn't. But, again, you can't fix it all in one day."

Regina's eyes had lines under them already. This had way too much potential to become a situation. "But, I can make it so I have a little less tomorrow."

It was time to get serious, so Regina did not burn herself too soon. "Babe, we're leaving."

Regina's eyes shot up to Emma's and there was nothing but heat and smoke. Emma smirked while her heart pounded in her chest. It felt good and dangerous to have that effect on Regina. What would Regina do if she simply said it in the right tone? She put her hand out and Regina climbed to her feet, work forgotten. Regina took her hand and she smiled.

"I'm going to take good care of ya," Emma promised.

Regina smiled back and her eyes actually sparkled. "I know."

Emma did her best to take care of Regina, who she felt took the best care of her. That was evident when Regina started dinner almost the moment they got home. Emma managed to talk her into changing clothes first, but nothing beyond that. She looked cute in her leggings, which were a gift from a boutique Emma had never heard of, but Emma did not say anything. Regina went to the kitchen while Emma checked on Henry.

"Homework done, bud?" Emma asked from his bedroom doorway.

Henry was at his desk, writing something. Regina worried about him being home for a few hours without them, but he looked okay. Emma was not sure when it was appropriate to leave kids home alone, but Henry had not burned the house down, so that was a plus. Besides, she was sure Regina would worry about the kid well into adulthood. He could be fifty and Regina would still wonder if he had clean socks, lunch, or things like that, which was fine. Emma was happy Henry had that in his life, even though it might eventually get on his nerves,

Henry looked up at her and smiled. "Homework's been done. I'm trying to plot a campaign so you and Gramps will stop fighting everything with your swords or whatever." He scratched his head. They had introduced his grandparents to D&D about a week and a half ago and they played almost every day for a little while. Emma was not having as much fun with them as Henry was, but she tolerated them for him.

"Dude, that's the best part! My paladin has so much Strength!" She grinned and held up her bicep. Her character was as strong as she was. Well, as strong as she was when she used magic to give herself super-strength.

He frowned at her, so that was obviously not the right answer. "But, you guys never really move. It's all 'let's fight monsters,' which you know gets on Mom's nerves because she actually wants to make it through the campaign."

With a shrug, Emma gave him a sorry smile as best she could. "Also why my paladin has so much Strength. You know telling me something annoys your mom is only going to make me do it more."

He nodded and he looked away, eyes focused on his desk. "Any news about Neal?"

She had wondered how long it would take him to ask. She sighed and stepped into the room. She leaned on his desk and put her hand on his shoulder. "The judge decided to let him go since he wasn't the one to unleash the chernabog and he seemed genuinely sorry." He probably put on the best performance of his life to get out of that.

Henry looked away for several seconds. "Do you think he really is?"

She shrugged. "It's hard to tell with him." She doubted he was sorry. He was too far gone to ever be really sorry for anything beyond getting caught. But, Henry did not need to hear that from her.

Henry rubbed his forehead and his face scrunched up for a long moment. "You okay with him being out?"

Emma's eyes stung. She was in danger of crying, but the question hit her hard, harder than finding out Neal got away. Maybe even a little harder than when David asked it. "I'm not happy he felt Regina and others were fine as collateral damage, but I can't see him doing that again, especially after nine people died because of his carelessness." Neal was many things, but she did not get the feeling he was okay with having blood on his hands, not the blood of innocents anyway. So, maybe he was at least sorry about that.

He took a deep breath. "Yeah, very not cool."

"Wanna talk about it, kid?" Emma wanted him to know she would be there for him, no matter what. She wanted him to know he could talk to her about anything, even Neal.

Henry gnawed his bottom lip and then nodded. "I don't know if I want to see him again and I don't get why."

"He tried to hurt your mom." That should not fly with anyone.

His face scrunched up as he thought on it. "Grams and Gramps put Mom in a collar and made her your slave and I'm okay with dinners and game nights with them."

Emma nodded. She understood the weirdness. She would never forgive Neal, but she forgave Regina for all sorts of things in their history. She was not sure why and she did not dwell on it most of the time.

Emma took a moment to consider why Henry might be all right with his grandparents and their treatment of his mom. "Maybe it's because their thing goes way back, before you even existed, but Neal has no reason to do this, no reason to think it's okay to hurt your mom."

"Exactly!" Henry threw his hands up. "He doesn't even know Mom and he felt like it was okay to maybe kill my mom if necessary to kill his dad. How was this the final straw for me, though? We've been through so much."

Emma went and sat on the bed. Henry moved to sit by her. She put her arm around him. He leaned against her and she pulled him close. She wished she could take his pain away. _This is why I didn't want this fuck-head Neal around him_.

Emma rested her cheek in his hair. "I don't know how to explain your emotions, but it could be because Neal already let you down. I don't think anybody, save maybe me, has disappointed you in such a way."

He pulled away to look at her with big, wet eyes. "You didn't let me down."

She offered him a small smile and mussed his hair. "Kid, I let you down in a similar way to how my parents let me down. You didn't like being adopted. You felt abandoned. It's valid, kid. It's okay." She kissed his head.

He sighed, deflating quite a bit. "I want to like him and forgive him, but I can't. At least with you, I can rationalize this had to happen this way for you to get here and break the Curse. Hell, I even get you did this because you didn't think you could raise a kid on your own, but after this, I don't want to rationalize anything, not with him. Mom never did anything to him, but he tries to kill her? Knowing she's my mom. Does he not care?"

Emma wished there were words to make this better, but no words existed. "I think Neal's pretty messed up. He saw Gold do horrible things and he thought he was doing the right thing. He's from the Enchanted Forest, from a really long time ago. His morality is different from us." Or so Regina told her when she wondered aloud how Neal could do something to get nine people killed not too long after it happened.

Henry sighed. "That sucks."

"It does. I hate to tell you, sometimes, life sucks."

"I know."

"I really wish you didn't." Emma only wanted for Henry to have the best life ever and he was robbed of that. It hurt. She felt like she failed, but she had always felt like that. Before she even gave birth to him, just carrying him while she was in prison was her failing him.

Henry gave her a hug around her middle. "For the record, I forgave you for letting me go, giving me up for adoption. I worked out a lot of stuff on my own. You love me and you wanted what was best for me. You didn't have faith in yourself to do that. I had some anger and resentment when I was hung up on Mom being the Evil Queen, but I'm working through it. I love Mom and I know she loves me. I love you and I know you love me."

Tears stung her eyes and she hugged Henry extra-tight. "I love you with all my heart, kid."

"I know. And I know you'd never hurt any of my family, especially my mom. Mom needs care and you do, too. I want to care for you."

Emma smiled. "Thanks. I want to care for you, too. I also want you to get a chance to be a kid and not carry burdens and stuff. So, if you ever need to talk about this stuff with Neal, you got me. If you ever need to talk about anything, you got me."

"I know." He curled into her for a long moment. She held him tight and he felt so young now. Neal had made that happen. She hoped they never saw him again.

When he pulled away, Emma suspected he was ready to face the world. "Wanna go watch a movie until dinner's ready?"

Henry nodded and they made their way to the living room. They found a movie and sat there until they heard the front door open. That was Snow and David. It was family time, as it was almost every evening at about this time. So far, it was nice. Her parents were not the assholes she thought they were, just two people drowning like her, like Regina, like the town. Had she forgiven them? No. But, she hurt a little less with them each time she saw them, which she suspected was Regina's plan all along.

"You ready for this?" Emma asked with mock determination in her eyes.

Henry smiled and held up a fist. "Always. Besides, they brought a game, so we can finish the movie later."

Emma laughed and they climbed to their feet, wanting to greet Snow and David. Snow was faster than they were, though, and was already by the kitchen by the time they made it anywhere. Snow grilled Regina about her first day back to work. Regina blew out a breath. Snow was not giving her a chance to answer.

"Mom, you can't interview a person and never let the person answer," Emma said.

Snow blushed for a quick second and stopped talking. She turned and pulled Emma into a hug. She then hugged Henry. David was next up and his hug was a little more under control.

"I'm sorry again," David whispered to Emma about Neal.

Emma gave him an extra squeeze. "It's okay. Nothing he did was your fault." Still, he held her a little longer than necessary. She appreciated it.

"So, Regina, tell us about what you did today, first day back to being mayor. I mean, being on the Royal Council was terrible," Snow said.

Regina scoffed. "Yet, you didn't pass up a chance to be in the Town Assembly." The Town Assembly was a new part of the town government to give some of the royals the power they craved and also a way to check Regina's power. But, the Town Assembly had been elected by the people in their neighborhoods, so every royal did not get a chance to serve. The Assembly could put a stop to Regina's decisions with a three-fourths majority vote as well as bring up the needs and wants of the districts they represented. Time would tell if it worked out.

Snow had the nerve to shrug. "I was elected. It's what people wanted." She smiled, and showed she had a way to go in accepting it was not a competition between her and Regina.

"I'll meet with the Town Assembly at the end of the week as it was agreed upon for updates on the town. If you're just curious, I worked on budgets mostly and rounding up city employees, or people willing to become city employees. I'm sure everyone wants their garbage picked up in the morning."

Emma wanted to clap. "You mean I don't have to drive our garbage to the landfill anymore?" So annoying. It turned out that the entire sanitation department was made up of nobles who felt they were too good for the job. Well, that was passed. "How did you find sanitation workers?"

"Well, it's not a full department, but a few commoners welcomed the work and some of the older Lost Boys were pleased to get well paying jobs. The commoners were unhappy with what the Curse dealt them and just wanted to have a choice. Also good, mail will start to be delivered again. Again, not a full department, but enough for some basic functions. Next, I have to figure out school bus drivers, cafeteria workers, custodians, and things of that nature."

Snow sighed. "Those things never made it into the Royal Council's debates."

Regina opened her mouth to say something, but a look from Emma silenced her. They all knew the Council was in it for the control, for the status, not to help the town. It did not need to be said. Regina rolled her eyes and turned her attention back to dinner.

"So, what games did you guys bring?" Henry asked, taking the conversation away from business talk. They all took the bait.

-8-8-8-8-

The night wound down. Henry was off to bed while Snow and David packed up the game they brought. Regina hated to admit, even to herself, but she liked watching Emma and Henry enjoy a game from the Enchanted Forest.

"So, I wanted to wait to tell you both this, but I got a text an hour ago from some people who saw Neal leaving town," David said from his spot on the couch.

Emma blew out a breath and ran her hand through her hair. "Of course he takes the super easy way out." She leaned against Regina, who sat next to her on the floor. They would have to figure out what to tell Henry. Beyond that, Regina would have to support Emma through this. She was not sure Emma completely processed this yet.

David sighed. "I just figured you'd want to know so you can figure out what to say to Henry."

"Thank you," Regina said while Emma nodded.

"Wish I could do more." He sounded like he meant that.

They ushered Snow and David out of the house and cleaned up. Once that was done, they sat on the couch. Emma held Regina close. Regina rested her head against Emma's shoulder.

"What are we going to tell Henry?" Regina asked.

Emma inhaled through her nose and gave Regina a squeeze. "It'll be fine. He's pretty good at working through his emotions and Neal isn't his favorite person at the moment. I'm sure he'll appreciate not having to see Neal as he processes, though."

"And how do you feel about it?"

Emma blew out a breath. "Part of me is glad he's gone, but of course I'm super pissed, too. He got Henry's hopes up and then does this bullshit. What a prick. How many lives does he want to ruin before he does us all a favor and gets lost forever?"

Regina tilted her head a little. "Did he ruin your life?" While, yes, Neal certainly had done horrible things, but it got them to this point. Emma had to see her life was not ruined by him. Paused, maybe, but not ruined.

Emma blinked and it was like a lightbulb came on in her head. "No, not really. Got Henry, you, a best friend who isn't an asshole, my parents who might not be assholes, and a good job. I'm doing good."

Regina looked her dead in the eye, needing Emma to feel this response. "In spite of him."

Emma nodded. "I guess. Things worked out."

"They certainly did. For all of us."

"Yeah." Her voice was strong.

"Are you all right?" Regina just wanted to check in again to be sure.

"Better than I've been in years. I've got family and home. What more could I want?"

Regina smiled. "I feel the same way."

Emma kissed the top of her head. "You know what, then let's go to bed. We'll figure out what to tell Henry tomorrow."

Regina was fine with that. They should confirm Neal was gone before saying anything to Henry anyway. Regardless of what Neal did, Regina and Emma would make sure Henry, and the town, would be all right.

-8-8-8-8-

Next time: a gratuitous epilogue.


	20. Beads Upon the Forehead

I don't own these characters; Disney/ABC does.

A/N: some sexy fun times to help ease the pain of the story.

20: Beads Upon the Forehead

Emma came in from her run and sighed as soon as she kicked her shoes off. Her feet breathed a sigh of relief along with her while she wiped sweat from her face. It felt like it did nothing. Sweat rolled down her back and stuck to more places than she was comfortable with. _I should've just ran in a sports bra, but it's too damn cold still_. Instead, her shirt was stuck to her and it felt gross along with all of her sweat. How had she let Ruby talk her into this staying in shape crap?

Running was no way to spend a Saturday morning. She should have slept in or stayed in bed all day. She deserved it, dealing with Storybrooke all week. Yes, things were going back to normal, but even when things were "normal" there was still crime. Some of the crime was heartbreaking, like having to arrest a teenage kid for "trespassing." He was actually just trying to return to his birth parents, who decided they didn't want him and were all too happy to leave him with his Cursed parents, who wanted him and took care of him, but he had teenage angst issues. The bio-parents even wanted to press charges, for the kid to really get it, but Emma and Ruby talked them out of it. _Damn, parents in the Enchanted Forest just seem like assholes_.

But, that was the sort of week she had. She was supposed to be relaxing on a Saturday and running was not the thing. Yes, she liked to stay in shape, but she was more into kickboxing or something like that. Ruby wanted to do running before they tried kickboxing.

They were doing kickboxing next Saturday if Emma had her say, which would also support small business around the town. They were also doing it in the afternoon, so she could sleep the entire morning away. Kickboxing was also sexier than running, which she knew would sell it to Ruby, who thought running would be sexy for some reason. But, then again, she had a lot of stamina. _Oh, right, that's how she sold this shit to me_. The promise of more stamina. Well, to hell with that. It was not like Regina was complaining.

As Emma stepped deeper into the house, she caught sight of something that would definitely improve her Saturday. Regina was planted on her knees in the corner with her hands rested on her thighs and her feet tucked underneath her. Suddenly, Emma was not tired anymore.

"Looks like someone's been naughty," Emma said, smiling even though Regina could not see her expression.

Regina did not turn from facing the wall. "Maybe."

"What could you have done? You said you were just gonna do some housework while I killed myself running with Ruby. You're here alone." It was supposed to be a calm morning for Regina. Henry was out with Emma's parents for the day, bonding. Emma was on better grounds with her parents, but that happened once they finally realized they needed to do some groveling. There was only so much Regina was willing to extend an olive branch to them on Emma's behalf, after all. Eventually, their pride gave way to humility and they admitted they had to work harder to be proper parents to Emma. Things got better then.

Emma and Regina were left with the Saturday alone to relax now that Storybrooke was almost a normal, fully functioning town. The town had been getting on Regina's nerves since she took back her job, but she did what was best for the town. One of the things still plaguing her was straightening out the housing situation. Nobles really thought Regina would just let them steal people's houses and now they were trying to tie the whole thing up in court since there was a court. As annoying a few people were, Regina fought for the masses who just wanted to live their lives in peace. She was hero to those people.

"I am and I did some chores," Regina replied.

"So, tell me what you did to have to go to the corner?" Emma liked that Regina punished herself sometimes. It was always for something adorably bad. The last time Regina put herself in the corner was because she insulted Emma's favorite television show.

Regina blew out a loud breath. "I was cleaning the refrigerator—" She did not get to finish.

"You did not throw out that pizza!" Emma planned to eat it this very afternoon with a beer and a movie. It was going to be the start of her relaxing Saturday! The Saturday she deserved!

Even though she did not turn around, Regina had a cute frown on her face. "It had mold on it!"

"No, it did not and don't you dare raise your voice at me. You know you were wrong. That's why you put yourself in the corner."

"I put myself in the corner because I could've saved it if I realized you'd leave it there for so long."

"Or you could've used magic," Emma said. Regina wanted to be punished, wanted Emma to take complete control. Regina needed to unwind and she deserved it, probably more than anybody else. Beyond the housing situation, she was often second-guessed when she made decisions, even though every move she made so far was the right one.

Regina sat up taller, like she was in the right. "I'm not supposed to use magic like that." She made that agreement with Henry, who felt like Regina depended on magic too much to solve her problems and it was not healthy.

Emma rolled her eyes. "Anyway, you were bad and you know it. I'm going to take a shower. You better be prepared on the bed when I get out." That would be a nice way to spend their Saturday.

Emma went to take a shower, grabbing some clothes on the way. She took a nice, hot and long shower. It gave her a chance to think about what to do to Regina. _I need to make sure it's good. She probably needs this considering how annoying everyone in town is to her_.

While the town voted Regina in back as mayor and understood she would defend them tooth and nail against villains, they still disrespected her sometime. They still sometimes treated her like she was the worst thing ever. It was hard to watch, even though Regina stood up for herself and gave way worse than she got, but she should not have to put up with such nonsense. She was actually helping out of the kindness of her heart and people acted like she was obligated to do it.

But, then again, people acted like Emma was obligated to do her job, too. Yeah, they understood how important the sheriff's department and they understood they could not do just anything, but they still tried to push the line. While they were not dueling in the streets anymore, they still called her about dogs in their yards and cats in trees when she had actual crimes to worry over. While things were not as bad as they used to be, there were robberies now, domestic violence, and other things since there was no Curse and people had trouble processing they were not going back to the Enchanted Forest. She shook her head to stop thinking about it. It was her day off, she needed to relax, and Regina was waiting for her.

When Emma entered the bedroom, her mind went blank for a moment as she caught sight of Regina, sitting on top of the bed with her feet tucked underneath her. Regina had on a blood red slip with matching lipstick and her new collar around her neck along with her matching cuffs. Polished garnets dotted the black leather except for the golden loop in the center where a golden swan charm dangled. The cuffs were similar, also with a golden swan charm swinging from loops.

Emma and Regina purchased the collar and cuffs together a couple of months ago. Emma played with the idea of buying some of her own. Regina would probably like it every now and then for Emma to lock her down with a collar and cuffs Emma alone picked out. It would give Emma that much more control when Regina just could not take the world anymore.

"Well, well, well, somebody looks like she's hoping to get out of trouble," Emma said.

"I sat in the corner for an hour," Regina replied, chin in the air in defiance.

"That was your choice. Now, my choice. Hold up your hands." Emma went to the nightstand as Regina held up her hands.

Emma pulled out a pair of handcuffs and attached each side to a ring on Regina's cuffs, binding her hands, but still gave her some range of movement. Regina pouted. It was cute. She ran her fingers through Regina's hair and gave her a peck on the lips.

"You look so pretty all wrapped up for me. Now, do I want to hook you to the bed or put you on your knees first?" Emma tapped her chin while Regina sat quietly, like she was supposed to. Emma stroked her hair gain. "Look at you being so good for me now. But, if you were really good you wouldn't have been sitting in the corner, right?"

"The food was bad, though."

Emma clicked her tongue. "No, no, no. See, love, that's so bad. On the floor. On your knees."

Regina nodded and slid off the bed with more grace than one would expect from a woman in a collar and handcuffs. Emma pulled off her sweatpants, revealing she had not bothered with underwear, and then sat on the edge of the bed. She spread her legs and watched as Regina crawled to Emma and sat up until her face was on level with Emma's center. She did not move and Emma smiled. She caressed Regina's hair again.

"You're so beautiful like this, on your knees for me, ready to please me. You want to please me, don't you?" Emma asked.

"Yes, I do."

"Then make me come. And, maybe, I'll let you come… at some point today," Emma replied.

Regina did not hesitate, going in face first, tasting Emma with her full tongue. Emma moaned as soon as Regina's tongue touched her slick, hot skin. They had been lovers for a few months, but Emma felt like Regina knew her body better than anyone ever had. Broad strokes from Regina's tongue, pausing at just the right spot each time, had Emma seeing stars in no time flat. Emma moaned loudly and caressed Regina's head to encourage her.

"Oh, you are such a good girl, baby. Such a good girl," Emma said.

The praise seemed to be all Regina needed to go all out. She licked, sucked, and tilted her head for better angles and access. Emma could only groan and coo as she felt pleasure building within, causing her thighs to shake. It was like sparks replaced her blood and popped as they coursed through her body with each touch from Regina. She made sure to continue stroking Regina's head, letting her know she was doing amazing. Of course, Regina knew that based on the noises she made as well, but Regina deserved and sometimes _needed_ verbal praise, which Emma understood.

Regina did not help as she brought her bound hands up, running her knuckles along Emma's inner thigh. The simple touch, so loving and gentle, it went right to Emma's core. Bliss burned its way through Emma's body and Regina wrapped her lips around Emma's clit. It was like she pulled a trigger and Emma exploded. She pressed Regina's face to her and rode her face as best she could trying to draw out her pleasure. She drowned under the wave for as long as she could, her body lost in an ocean of pure ecstasy. She collapsed on the bed, releasing Regina's head as she fell back.

"Damn. I swear you get better and better at that each time." Emma blew out a breath. "But, that doesn't change anything."

Regina pouted, but also managed to glare at Emma. "You said I was a good girl."

Emma sat up, even though she really wanted to melt into the bed. But, Regina wanted to play. Playing was good. She reached down and stroked Regina's cheek.

"You are a good girl, but you did a bad thing. You have to be punished, so you learn not to do bad things," Emma said.

Regina had the nerve to frown at her. "The food was going bad and I already sat in the corner."

Emma shook her head. "You know that doesn't count. Now, up." She grabbed Regina by the collar, guiding her up. The swan charm rang out a little as it hit against the loop.

Regina rose to her feet and moved to the bed. She settled on her knees, feet tucked underneath her and hands in her lap, waiting patiently. A prim and proper lady… in a collar. Emma smiled and knew exactly what she wanted to do to Regina, for Regina. Regina needed to relax, enjoy herself.

"Hands up." Emma stroked Regina's knee.

Regina held her hands up and Emma took the handcuffs, attaching the loop to a hook she had installed in the wooden headboard. Regina settled against the pillows with her hands above her head. Emma ran her hands up and down Regina's smooth legs.

"You wanna talk about it?" Emma asked. Something had to happen for Regina to make her wants so blatant. Whenever Regina put herself in the corner, it was usually because she was stressed.

"Later."

Emma nodded. "Fair enough. So, you know what I'm gonna do to you?"

Regina shook her head. "No, but you're going to tell me in great detail as part of my punishment."

Emma grinned and sat up straight. "Oh, you do know me well." She enjoyed describing the punishment to tease her lover. The look that always settled into Regina's eyes as she spoke captured Emma and made it one of her favorite things. Regina loved the attention.

Regina turned her mouth and managed to sit up straighter. "I know you're mean and unfair."

Emma scowled. "Oh, really? And you think you're a good girl, talking to me like that? You know what, maybe I'll go watch a movie." She moved like she was about to get up.

"Emma!" Regina whined. She probably needed to let that out.

Emma looked at her. "Are you done sassing me? Done acting like you have a say in the matter?"

Regina's moue was back. "I'm sorry."

Emma tilted her head and studied Regina for a long moment. She did not look any worse for wear and she did not look particularly off. Why was she being so mouthy then? "Do you want to talk about it?" She was all for fun and games, but she needed to make sure Regina was all right.

"Not now."

Emma nodded. "Then take your punishment. Be my good girl."

It took a moment, but Regina nodded. Emma ran her hands along Regina's thighs again. The silk of the nightgown was nice, but her skin was even better. Emma could spend all day caressing Regina's skin.

"So, here's what's going to happen, babe. I'm going to make camp between your legs. Eat you real good until you come at least three times. Then, I'm going to slide my fingers inside of you and stroke you nice and slow, making sure to touch all your favorite spots while keeping my tongue on you. After that, if you're still coherent, I'm gonna go into the drawer and grab your favorite strap-on and fuck you into the bed. If at any point you're bad, I'm going to put the chain on your collar to yank your head and put you in line. If you're bad after that, you get the ball gag."

Regina whimpered and wiggled a bit. "No, it makes me drool."

Emma leaned down, giving Regina a little kiss on her lipstick-smeared mouth. "Then be good for me."

If they got to the point she needed to use the ball gag, she could only wonder what happened to Regina during the week. Regina disliked the ball gag for the reason she stated, but sometimes it was a necessary evil. The ball gag was Regina's ultimate surrender. The indignity of drooling was beat out by being able to do that in front of Emma without judgment. The ball gag was the ultimate break from responsibility. She would have noticed signs if Regina really needed that. It meant everything outside of the house was shit for Regina, which happened a few times.

"So, you're gonna be good, right? So, no ball gag?" Emma asked.

Regina shook her head. "Please, no. I'll be good."

Emma gave Regina another kiss. This one was deeper, lingering. As Emma pulled away, Regina tried to follow. The headboard shook as she yanked on her bonds. Emma smiled at her.

"Relax. I got you." Emma caressed Regina's legs as she placed soft, wet kisses on Regina's chin, down her neck, and along Regina's flushed chest. She swept Regina's slip to the side, just enough to reveal a beautiful pebbled brown nipple. She kissed around Regina's soft breast while caressing her nipple. Regina whimpered and writhed. The movement became a buck as Emma wrapped her lips around Regina's nipple. Regina's moans grew in pitch as Emma suckled, tongue loving Regina's body. She switched sides and treated the other gem to the same adoration and care.

Regina's breath began coming in heavy pants and that was Emma's signal to move on. She pressed kisses down Regina's torso, even with the slip in the way. As she got to her destination, she pushed Regina's slip up above her waist. There were no panties, allowing Emma to dive right into her treasure. Regina was warm and welcoming. Emma clutched Regina's ass, pulling her closer.

A low, deep howl escaped Regina and Emma could feel her lover melt against her face. Emma smiled to herself. That was one and in record time. She pulled away, kissing Regina's thigh. She let Regina catch her breath.

"You need that?" Emma asked.

Regina smiled at her. "I always need you."

Emma held in a chuckle as pride bloomed in her chest. "Two more. You good?"

Regina nodded and Emma went in for orgasm number two. She adjusted Regina slightly, lifting her up more for better access. She licked Regina like an ice cream cone, finding her just as sweet and delicious. She could do this all day and Regina would probably let her. _Gotta try that one day_.

Regina's breath hitched and high-pitched little noises escaped her. Regina's body tended to follow the pitch of her voice. As the pitch climbed, Emma clutched and gripped Regina's ass, pulling her closer. Emma moaned as Regina moved against her mouth. Regina was always so good on her tongue. She tasted like love and home. The beautiful flavor made Emma's body burn and her hips ground against the bed, wanting relief. Regina screamed and that was two.

Emma pulled away, wanting Regina to see how wet her face was. "That one sounded good. Was it good?"

Regina's flushed chest heaved and her eyes were barely open. "So good."

"Agreed. So good we should get to number three immediately." Emma went right back to her happy place before Regina could respond or catch her breath. She sucked Regina's clit like it was candy to be savored. Regina whined, which turned into a deep moan as Emma eased a finger into Regina. Regina bucked, trying to take more of her in.

At times like this, Emma would like to pop Regina's thigh or ass, but hitting was a no go. They tried a couple of times, but it always ended in tears. Regina could not explain it, but she could not handle even the lightest spanks. It did not matter. There were other ways to let Regina know she was being bad. She pulled her mouth away and Regina groaned.

"Babe, you take what I give. No more, no less," Emma reminded her.

Regina let loose a long whine. "But, you feel so good! You make me feel so good!"

Emma kissed her thigh. "I know, but still."

Regina went back to pouting. "I'm sorry. Please."

"Well, you said please." And Emma craved Regina's climax, so she returned to her favorite spot. Her tongue and lips occupied Regina's precious pearl while one and then two fingers massaged Regina from the inside out.

Regina's moans rose and rose. This time Emma could feel Regina pulsing around her fingers, gripping her. Regina's legs fell open wider and Emma's fingers gained speed. She could feel Regina's thighs flex as Regina's moans became more breathy. Regina cried out as her body exploded around Emma's fingers. It was heaven.

Emma peppered Regina with light kisses and gentle strokes of her fingers until Regina collapsed on the bed. Emma placed one last kiss to the inside of Regina's thigh before looking up at her. Regina looked beautiful, skin glowing, a soft smile, and a satisfied look in her eyes.

"Done?" Emma asked, not wanting to wear Regina out.

"I was done when I sat in the corner. This whole thing is unfair." So, not done. Emma got up to get the strap-on and maybe the chain for Regina's collar since she wanted to be mouthy.

-8-8-8-8-

Regina could barely focus as she watched Emma grab the strap-on and the chain for her collar. Both made her body hum. She was so happy Henry's grandparents wanted to spend the whole Saturday with him. How could Regina resist this with having the house to themselves? Besides, Emma clearly needed this, even if she probably did not realize it.

Regina groaned a little as Emma finally took off her tank top, showing off what amounted to the perfect abdomen. Watching Emma slip onto the strap-on made Regina clench as memories of past use fluttered through her mind. She released a long breath and Emma smiled at her.

"You ready?" Emma asked.

"Undo my cuffs?" She did not really want that, but she needed to say something.

Emma scoffed. "Of course not. But, I'll take you down."

Regina would like to be let down. Her shoulders burned a bit. Emma unhooked her, but did not unlink her cuffs. She attached what was essentially a leash to Regina's collar. They had played a lot with the leash when alone in the house or in the bedroom. There was something about the ownership it showed that did so many things to both of them. Emma liked knowing and seeing Regina was hers. Regina liked knowing and seeing Emma would take care of her in the ways she wanted and needed.

"Sit up," Emma said.

Regina did as ordered, sitting straight up, hands on her knees, feet underneath her. She liked sitting at attention for Emma. It gave her a chance to watch Emma openly admire her. It made Regina feel valuable, wanted, precious. Emma caressed her cheek, like she was a priceless work of art. Did she ever touch Emma like this? She hoped so.

"You're so beautiful," Emma said.

"You always say so." And she knew coming from Emma it meant so much more than her looks. Beauty was about who she was.

"Because it's true and you need to know. You're beautiful. Every part of you.''

"You are so wonderful." It needed to be said.

Emma smiled at her and leaned down to give her a kiss. It was as sweet as always, like sinking into a hot bath. Then Emma pulled away and yanked Regina forward using her leash. Regina grunted, but she knew how she had to look when Emma made the move. Her eyes were bright, sparkling with joy that buzzed over every bit of her.

"I'm gonna let you pick. Back or knees," Emma said.

Regina hated that she learned to like being on her back with Emma. Being on her back used to be the worst. Something she never did with any lover. But, Emma changed all of that. Looking in Emma's eyes when they were connected, sharing a breath with Emma as they moved. It was the very definition of intimacy. She loved it, loved feeling so close to Emma. But, this was not about her.

So, Regina got on her knees. She heard Emma whimper. Emma was so weak for Regina's ass it was almost comical. But, it was flattering, too. Another little thing that made Regina feel loved and valued in all the right ways.

Emma climbed on the bed. She took Regina by the waist and directed her more to the center of the bed. Her chain jingled as they moved. Emma caressed the small of her back with the leash in hand. Regina shivered at the touch, including the chill of the chain. Emma's free hand moved between Regina's legs and caressed her. Regina moaned as sparks flew through her.

"Emma, please." Regina wiggled her ass.

Emma squeezed her ass and pulled the leash a little. "Don't rush me. I want you to be ready."

"I am!" Regina whined, earning another yank. She would not be able to keep herself up right for long if this kept up.

"You are." Emma purred.

Regina's breath hitched as she felt the tip of the toy against her. Emma rubbed her back again before shoving every delicious inch inside of her. She knew she screamed even though she did not fully hear it. Her brain and body were too overloaded with ecstasy to focus on anything else. She clawed at the bed, wishing it was Emma's back. Emma set a steady pace that helped drive Regina out of her mind. She dropped, body lost to the dazzle under her skin. Emma yanked her leash.

"Up," Emma said and slammed the toy into Regina.

Hot flames burst through Regina and she yelped. She was up immediately as Emma's pace increased. The flames grew into a raging fire as they crackled and popped, burning through her. Regina would not last much longer. With each push from Emma's hips, Emma grunted and somehow the sound added to the pleasure in Regina. Regina panted and her heart swelled. She was set to explode.

"Oh, Emma!" Regina cooed.

"Love you, beautiful," Emma said.

That was it for Regina. It always was. Emma had the ability to rip Regina apart and put her back together with three simple words. The pleasure blew Regina into tiny pieces and she felt like she was floating through the air. She was outside of herself, existing in love and bliss.

Regina was not sure when, but Emma pulled out of her and she gathered Regina in her arms. They were cuddled up at the head of the bed when Regina regained a complete sense of the room. Emma stroked her head, brushing her hair away from her face.

"You back?" Emma asked.

"You could've continued."

"Nah. I'm tired. Remember I went for a run."

Regina could not help chuckling. "True. Did you at least peak before you ran out of energy?" She smirked.

"Oh, ha, ha. I did. Keep picking on me and I'll leave you cuffed and tie your leash to the bolt on the bed."

It would not be the first time. Regina did not want to play anymore, so she was quiet. Emma undid the handcuffs first and then took off the leather cuffs. She threw them all on the floor. She also unhooked the chain and tossed it to the floor. The collar would stay on until it was time to leave the room.

They cuddled together, existing in silence for a little while. They both valued silence together. They could gather their thoughts and then share them if necessary or desired. It was a level of trust a lot of people probably did not think about, being able to share raw thoughts, but it was a luxury they had only been allowed with a chosen few and all of those few had been disappointments until each other.

"So, you ready to talk about it?" Emma asked, caressing Regina's side.

Regina yawned and hooked her leg around Emma's, caressing her calf. "There's nothing to talk about. We have the house to ourselves and the outside world is annoying almost all of the time. We should enjoy each other." She shifted to rest more on Emma and slide a hand between her thighs.

"We should."

"Plus, you needed this as much as I do."

Emma's brow furrowed. "What?"

Regina's fingers found slickness between Emma's legs. "Yes. Because outside is chaos and people treat you like you're at their beck and call. You can't control it." But, Emma could control her. It gave Emma an outlet she needed.

Emma moaned and spread for Regina. "This town is crazy even when you have it in working in order."

Regina stroked her slow and easy. "It is. But, in here, you reign supreme." Regina kissed Emma's shoulder as she caressed Emma, whose hips moved with her hand.

Emma whimpered, now more interested in chasing her orgasm than talking. Regina did not mind. She kissed Emma's neck and shoulder as Emma rode her hand. She could feel Emma straining, wanting.

"Come for me, Emma. Please, let me have this one," Regina whispered in her ear and then she nipped Emma's earlobe.

Emma purred and exploded all over Regina's hand. With a sigh, Emma settled onto the pillows. Regina settled against Emma. Their breathing was even in sync, calm, soothing. They relaxed. They could relax.

"You make so much of the crap worth it. You and Henry. You are everything," Emma said.

Regina nuzzled her neck. "Yes. I'm glad I stopped being your villain. I enjoy being your lover so much more. Your lover, your partner. I don't think I've ever felt this good in my life. It's thanks to you."

Emma kissed the top of her head. Regina loved it when she did that. It was that intimacy thing again. It was wonderful. Emma was wonderful.

Silence soon blanketed the room. Emma drifted to sleep with Regina's hand still nestled between her legs and a smile on her face. Regina followed, drifting off with happiness coursing through her. The outside world was chaos, but inside their home was everything they ever wanted.

-8-8-8-8-

The End.

A/N: Thanks to everyone who read the story. I hope you guys enjoyed that, even with all of the heartache. I hope you all continue to read and enjoy my work. Please, if you like my work, go check out my books available on Amazon, under the name S.L. Kassidy. Please, come say hi to me on Facebook. Back to my padded cell with me.


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